President Donald Trump on Friday ordered all U.S. federal agencies to “immediately cease any use” of artificial intelligence developed by California-based start-up Anthropic, following the company’s refusal to fully open its model for military use.
On his social media platform Truth Social, the president wrote:
“I am ordering ALL federal agencies of the U.S. government to IMMEDIATELY CEASE any use of Anthropic’s technology. We don’t need it, we don’t want it, and we will no longer work with them.”
The decision comes amid rising tensions between the U.S. administration and Anthropic, developer of the AI model Claude, after the company declined to lift certain restrictions demanded by the Department of Defense. Trump called the company’s stance a “disastrous mistake”, accusing it of endangering national security and the lives of U.S. soldiers. He announced, however, a six-month transition period to allow a gradual disengagement of Anthropic’s tools, particularly within the Department of Defense.
Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth criticized the company, calling its actions “treason” and denouncing what he described as “ideological whims of the tech giants.” An ultimatum had been set for Anthropic, expiring Friday night, threatening enforcement actions under Cold War-era legislation.
Anthropic, for its part, cited ethical considerations. CEO Dario Amodei stated that in some cases, AI could harm democratic values rather than defend them. The company has refused to allow its model to be used for mass surveillance of U.S. citizens or for fully autonomous lethal weapons without human oversight.
Founded in 2021 by former members of OpenAI, Anthropic emphasizes AI safety and ethics. In early 2026, the company published a “constitution” outlining the principles guiding Claude’s operations to prevent uses deemed dangerously inappropriate.
