Pentagon and Defense Policy

At a March 24 hearing U.S. District Judge Rita Lin called the Pentagon’s actions against AI firm Anthropic "troubling" and said the blacklist "looks like an attempt to cripple" the company, questioning whether three steps — a Trump‑era ban, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s demand that contractors cut commercial ties, and a supply‑chain‑risk designation — were narrowly tailored to national‑security concerns and noting the department could simply stop using Anthropic’s Claude if worried about chain‑of‑command integrity. Anthropic is seeking a preliminary injunction to restore the status quo as of Feb. 26 by pausing the designation and blocking enforcement, while the Pentagon contends the measures address risks such as potential future sabotage or a hidden "kill switch" and says Anthropic would otherwise have an "operational veto"; Judge Lin said she expects to rule within days.