www.gistzon.com.ng

A U.S. federal judge has blocked the Pentagon from blacklisting Anthropic, the artificial intelligence company behind the Claude AI model.

U.S. District Judge Rita Lin ruled that the Pentagon’s decision to designate Anthropic as a national security supply-chain risk was “illegal and baseless.”

The dispute began after Anthropic refused to allow its AI models to be used for certain military purposes, including mass surveillance and autonomous weapons.

The Pentagon had argued that Anthropic’s restrictions could create operational risks for the U.S. military. Anthropic, however, maintained that its position was based on concerns about the safe and responsible use of artificial intelligence.

In her ruling, Judge Lin said national security concerns could not be used as a justification to punish a company for criticizing government policies.

The ruling is a major legal victory for Anthropic and another setback for the Pentagon in its ongoing dispute with the AI company.

Anthropic welcomed the decision and said it remains committed to working with the U.S. government on responsible AI applications for national security.

The Pentagon and U.S. government could still challenge the ruling.