Trump orders federal agencies to cease use of Anthropic AI technology

President Donald Trump on Friday ordered all U.S. federal agencies to "immediately cease" using technology from Anthropic, the artificial intelligence company behind Claude. The directive followed a public dispute between Anthropic and the Pentagon over the terms of military access to the company's AI systems.

Trump announced the order on Truth Social, accusing Anthropic of attempting to "STRONG-ARM" the Pentagon. He specified that agencies such as the Defense Department, which are currently using Anthropic's products at various levels, would have a six-month phase-out period to comply.

The conflict centers on a demand from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, outlined in a January memo, that Anthropic agree to allow "any lawful use" of its technology by the U.S. military. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei refused to accept this condition, stating his company "cannot in good conscience accede" to the Defense Department's demands.

Anthropic sought assurances that its AI models would not be used for fully autonomous weapons systems or mass domestic surveillance of Americans. The Pentagon set a deadline of 5:01 p.m. ET Friday for Anthropic to agree to its demands. That deadline passed without an agreement being reached.

Following Trump's order, Defense Secretary Hegseth announced he was ordering the Pentagon to "designate Anthropic a Supply-Chain Risk to National Security" in response to the AI startup's refusal to comply with the government's demands regarding use of its technology.

Anthropic signed a $200 million contract with the Pentagon in July 2025. The dispute over the terms of that agreement and subsequent demands for expanded military access has now resulted in the federal government's decision to phase out the company's products across agencies.