Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has issued a public statement defending the company's decision to maintain safeguards on its AI models despite pressure from the Department of War. The company, which was the first to deploy frontier AI models on classified government networks and at National Laboratories, has been extensively used for intelligence analysis, operational planning, and cyber operations across military agencies.

Amodei emphasized that Anthropic has proactively supported US national security interests, including cutting off access to firms linked to the Chinese Communist Party despite forfeiting hundreds of millions in revenue. The company has also defended against CCP-sponsored cyberattacks and advocated for strong export controls on chips. However, Anthropic has drawn a line at two specific use cases: mass domestic surveillance and fully autonomous weapons.

The Department of War has threatened to remove Anthropic from their systems and potentially designate the company as a "supply chain risk" - a label previously reserved for US adversaries - if they do not remove these safeguards. Amodei stated that Anthropic cannot in good conscience comply with these demands, arguing that AI-driven mass surveillance poses serious risks to fundamental liberties and that current frontier AI systems are not reliable enough for fully autonomous weapons.