DOD says Anthropic’s ‘red lines’ make it an ‘unacceptable risk to national security’

The U.S. Department of Defense has filed a 40-page response in a California federal court calling Anthropic an 'unacceptable risk to national security.' The DOD's core concern is that Anthropic might disable or alter its AI models during warfighting operations if its corporate 'red lines' are crossed. The dispute stems from a $200 million Pentagon contract signed last summer, after which Anthropic objected to its AI being used for mass surveillance or lethal targeting decisions. The DOD labeled Anthropic a supply chain risk, Anthropic sued challenging the designation on First Amendment grounds, and a preliminary injunction hearing is scheduled for next Tuesday. OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft employees, along with legal rights groups, have filed amicus briefs supporting Anthropic.