Anthropic sues Defense Department over supply chain risk designation

In Brief Posted: 8:39 AM PDT · March 9, 2026 Rebecca Bellan Anthropic sues Defense Department over supply chain risk designation Anthropic has made good on its promise to challenge the Department of Defense in court after the agency labeled it a supply chain risk late last week. The Claude maker filed a complaint against the Department on Monday. The complaint comes after a weeks-long conflict between Anthropic and the DOD over whether the military should have unrestricted access to Anthropic’s AI systems. Anthropic had two firm red lines: it didn’t want its technology to be used for mass surveillance of Americans and didn’t believe it was ready to power fully autonomous weapons with no humans making targeting and firing decisions.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth argued that the Pentagon should have access to AI systems for “any lawful purpose.” A supply chain risk label is usually reserved for foreign adversaries, and requires any company or agency that does work with the Pentagon to certify that it doesn’t use Anthropic’s models. Anthropic called the DOD’s actions “unprecedented and unlawful” in a complaint filed in San Francisco federal court. “The Constitution does not allow the government to wield its enormous power to punish a company for its protected speech.” This story is developing. Please check back for updates. Topics AI, Anthropic, dario amodei, dod, Government & Policy, pete hegseth, supply chain risk June 9 Boston, MA Actively scaling? Fundraising? Planning your next launch?TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026 delivers tactical playbooks and direct access to 1,000+ founders and investors who are building, backing, and closing.Register by March 13 to save up to $300. REGISTER NOW Newsletters See More Subscribe for the industry’s biggest tech news TechCrunch Daily News Every weekday and Sunday, you can get the best of TechCrunch’s coverage. TechCrunch Mobility TechCrunch Mobility is your destination for transportation news and insight.

Startups Weekly Startups are the core of TechCrunch, so get our best coverage delivered weekly. StrictlyVC Provides movers and shakers with the info they need to start their day. No newsletters selected. Subscribe By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice. Related Government & Policy Will the Pentagon’s Anthropic controversy scare startups away from defense work? Anthony Ha 20 hours ago AI A roadmap for AI, if anyone will listen Connie Loizos 1 day ago AI OpenAI hardware exec Caitlin Kalinowski quits in response to Pentagon deal Anthony Ha 2 days ago Latest in Government & Policy In Brief Anthropic sues Defense Department over supply chain risk designation Rebecca Bellan 13 minutes ago Government & Policy Will the Pentagon’s Anthropic controversy scare startups away from defense work? Anthony Ha 20 hours ago Gadgets Push for $40 smartphones builds momentum, but still faces cost hurdles Jagmeet Singh 1 day ago