Beth Fukumoto: Ethics In AI Isn't Just A Slogan Anymore

Column Beth Fukumoto: Ethics In AI Isn't Just A Slogan Anymore The Anthropic fight matters here because it reminds us what’s at stake and why Hawaiʻi needs to implement solid, ethical AI policy. By Beth Fukumoto March 1, 2026 · 5 min read AP Photo/Patrick Sison About the Author Beth Fukumoto Beth Fukumoto served three terms in the Hawaiʻi House of Representatives. She was the youngest woman in the U.S. to lead a major party in a legislature, the first elected Republican to switch parties after Donald Trump’s election, and a Democratic congressional candidate. Currently, she works as a political commentator and teaches leadership and ethics at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. Opinions are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Civil Beat’s views. You can reach her by email at columnists@civilbeat.org. The Anthropic fight matters here because it reminds us what’s at stake and why Hawaiʻi needs to implement solid, ethical AI policy. If you paid for an AI tool this week, you made a political choice, even if you did not realize it. Here is why that matters, and what we can do next. The Pentagon gave Anthropic an ultimatum: either open your AI models for unrestricted military use or lose your federal contract. Anthropic’s CEO, Dario Amodei, refused. He specifically objected to two uses: mass domestic surveillance of Americans and fully autonomous weapons systems without human oversight. In response, President Trump ordered all federal agencies to stop using Ant...