alt.hn

2/25/2026 at 8:01:00 AM

Pentagon sets Friday deadline for Anthropic to abandon ethics rules for AI

https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/24/hegseth-sets-friday-deadline-for-anthropic-to-drop-its-ai-red-lines-00795641

by borski

2/25/2026 at 8:51:10 AM

The idea of putting American companies on a blacklist that is typically used for only a few companies from ‘enemy’ countries, where other suppliers to the government cannot do business with them either, is incredibly dystopian and authoritarian. It goes against basic American values. And at worst, it risks perhaps the most important company of this era.

To me, it feels like forcing ideological choices on a business, and a violation of the first amendment. If the Trump administration / Pete Hegseth had any interest in acting fairly, they would simply ask companies to not use Anthropic for any situation that involves the prohibited activities - which are mass surveillance and AI-driven killing machines - but otherwise let them use Anthropic if they want.

by SilverElfin

2/25/2026 at 11:09:56 AM

IANAL but it seems 3rd-amendment-adjacent.

by evanb

2/25/2026 at 10:03:56 AM

> If the Trump administration / Pete Hegseth had any interest in acting fairly

(they don't)

by BugsJustFindMe

2/25/2026 at 12:31:12 PM

This is no different from the lawyers at any large organization telling individual teams not to use a specific vendor. It happens all the time.

Anthropic wants to dictate what the DoD can do with its product. The DoD said that means you’re not fit for purpose. Really not a big deal.

It’s just not reasonable to think the DoD will start doing license audits of individual missions so Anthropic can virtue signal.

by anthony_d