D.C. Circuit Backs Pentagon’s Anthropic Supply Chain Risk Designation
A federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., upheld the Pentagon’s decision to label AI company Anthropic a national security supply chain risk. The 2-1 majority found the designation reasonable after Anthropic refused to allow its Claude models to be used for autonomous weapons or mass surveillance. The court rejected Anthropic’s retaliation claim and sided with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s concern that safety restrictions could disrupt military operations.
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Earlier federal actions preceded the ruling. In June, an export-control order barred foreign nationals from Anthropic’s newest Claude models, citing a claimed jailbreak method that could expose software flaws. President Trump had already told agencies to stop using Anthropic technology, setting a six-month phase-out from classified military work. Anthropic sued in