Technology
Pentagon tech chief says Anthropic was dropped over battlefield use restrictions
Under Secretary of War Emil Michael stated that the Pentagon froze its relationship with the AI startup because its contract barred deployment for missile defense and combat management.
The short version
- Department of War Chief Technology Officer Emil Michael revealed that the Pentagon halted its relationship with Anthropic because the company's contract prohibited using its artificial intelligence for battlefield management and missile defense.
- Following the freeze this spring, the Pentagon signed new contracts with competitor tech firms including SpaceX, OpenAI, Google, NVIDIA, Reflection, Microsoft, and Amazon Web Services.
- The dispute over the Department of War's authorization policy—requiring technology to be usable for "all lawful purposes"—is currently being litigated in federal court.
Key facts
- Emil Michael, the under secretary of war for research and engineering, stated in a podcast interview that he initiated the removal of Anthropic after discovering contract restrictions on battlefield and missile defense applications.[Fox News]
- The Pentagon frozen its partnership with Anthropic in the spring and subsequently signed agreements with other technology providers, including OpenAI, SpaceX, Google, NVIDIA, Reflection, Microsoft, and Amazon Web Services.[Fox News]
- The legal dispute between the Pentagon and Anthropic is currently undergoing litigation in federal court.[Fox News]
- Michael criticized the Biden administration for its handling of the initial contract, asserting that the White House had previously designated Anthropic as its chosen AI firm.[Fox News]
What remains uncertain
- Anthropic's specific legal arguments in the ongoing federal court case have not been detailed beyond its public stance against the Pentagon's broad "all lawful purposes" mandate.[Fox News]