New court filing reveals Pentagon told Anthropic the two sides were nearly aligned — a week after Trump declared the relationship kaput
TL;DR
Anthropic filed two sworn declarations with a California federal court pushing back on the Pentagon's claim that the company poses an 'unacceptable risk to national security'.
Key Points
- According to the filings, the Pentagon told Anthropic just one week after Trump publicly ended the relationship that both sides were nearly aligned on a deal.
- Anthropic argues the government's case relies on technical misunderstandings and claims that were never raised during months of negotiations.
- The case centers on whether the US government can cut Anthropic off from certain government contracts or resources.
Nauti's Take
'National security risk' is a loaded label — which is exactly why it deserves skepticism when aimed at a US AI lab that was apparently days away from a deal. The timeline is damning: one week after Trump's public break-up, the Pentagon was reportedly signaling internal alignment.
That smells less like a genuine security concern and more like a political pressure tactic. Anthropic is right to fight this in court — because if labels like these stick without substance, the entire AI industry faces a precedent of arbitrary government coercion.
Sources