The Pentagon formally labels Anthropic a supply-chain risk | The Verge

AIPolicyPoliticsThe Pentagon formally labels Anthropic a supply-chain riskPete Hegseth had been threatening to punish the AI company for not loosening its acceptable use policy. Now, it’s official.Pete Hegseth had been threatening to punish the AI company for not loosening its acceptable use policy. Now, it’s official.by Tina NguyenMar 5, 2026, 11:02 PM UTCLinkShareGiftUS Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a press conference on US military action in Iran, at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on March 2, 2026. Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty ImagesPart OfAI vs. the Pentagon: killer robots, mass surveillance, and red linessee all updates Tina Nguyen is a Senior Reporter for The Verge and author of Regulator, covering the second Trump administration, political influencers, tech lobbying and Big Tech vs. Big Government.After weeks of failed negotiations, public ultimatums, and lawsuit threats, the Defense Department has formally labeled Anthropic a “supply-chain risk”, escalating its fight with the AI company over their acceptable use policies and potentially bringing their fight to court.The decision, first reported by The Wall Street Journal on Thursday, citing one source familiar, will bar defense contractors from working with the government if they use Claude, Anthropic’s AI program, in their products. Though the designation is typically applied to foreign companies with ties to adversarial governments, this is the first time that an American company has publicl...