President Trump orders federal agencies to stop using Anthropic after Pentagon dispute

Source: TechCrunch

In Brief

In a post on Truth Social, President Trump directed federal agencies to cease use of all Anthropic products after the company’s public dispute with the Department of Defense. The president allowed a six‑month phase‑out period for departments using the products, emphasizing that Anthropic is no longer welcome as a federal contractor.

“We don’t need it, we don’t want it, and will not do business with them again,” the president wrote.

The post does not mention any plans to invoke the Defense Production Act or designate Anthropic as a supply‑chain risk. Instead, the president urged the company to cooperate during the six‑month phase‑out, threatening “major civil and criminal consequences” if it did not.

The dispute centered on Anthropic’s refusal to allow its AI models to be used for mass domestic surveillance or fully autonomous weapons, which Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth described as unduly restrictive.

CEO Dario Amodei reiterated his stance in a public statement, refusing to compromise on the two points:

“Our strong preference is to continue to serve the Department and our warfighters — with our two requested safeguards in place,” Amodei wrote. “Should the Department choose to offboard Anthropic, we will work to enable a smooth transition to another provider, avoiding any disruption to ongoing military planning, operations, or other critical missions.”