OpenAI signs Pentagon deal after military labels rival Anthropic a supply chain risk

The Pentagon designated the AI company Anthropic a supply chain risk, which could cut it off from military contractors. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued the designation. The Trump administration also ordered military contractors and federal agencies to cease business with Anthropic.

Anthropic rejected the Pentagon's demands to remove safety guardrails from its AI, specifically refusing to allow its technology to be used for lethal autonomous weapons or mass surveillance. Dario Amodei, the CEO of Anthropic, said the company 'cannot in good conscience accede' to the Pentagon's request. Anthropic said it will challenge the supply chain risk designation in court.

Hours after the actions against Anthropic, OpenAI announced it had reached a deal with the Pentagon to deploy its AI models on the U.S. Department of Defense's classified network. The Pentagon had given Anthropic an ultimatum to lift its military limits or risk losing contracts.