The company said in a complaint that these actions are “unprecedented and unlawful,” and that they are “harming Anthropic irreparably.” The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, News.Az reports, citing CNBC.
***
“Anthropic’s contracts with the federal government are already being canceled. Current and future contracts with private parties are also in doubt, jeopardizing hundreds of millions of dollars in the near-term,” the filing says. “On top of those immediate economic harms, Anthropic’s reputation and core First Amendment freedoms are under attack. Absent judicial relief, those harms will only compound in the weeks and months ahead.”
The lawsuit is the latest episode in a dramatic two-week saga between Anthropic and the Trump administration over how the company’s AI models can be used on the battlefield and elsewhere. Before the spat between the two sides escalated into the public’s view late last month, Anthropic served as an early partner across many U.S. agencies as the government sought to rapidly upgrade its systems and capabilities with cutting-edge AI technology.
On Thursday, Anthropic confirmed that it had officially been designated a supply chain risk, an extraordinary move that has historically been reserved for foreign adversaries. It will require defense vendors and contractors to certify that they don’t use Anthropic’s models in their work with the Pentagon.
President Donald Trump also shared a post on social media last month directing federal agencies to “immediately cease” all use of Anthropic’s technology.
“WE will decide the fate of our Country — NOT some out-of-control, Radical Left AI company run by people who have no idea what the real World is all about,” Trump wrote.
Anthropic has asked the court to vacate the supply chain risk designation and to grant the company a stay on the action as the legal case unfolds.
