Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei refused to work with the US military for this reason, Pentagon called false
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has released a statement, explaining that the AI startup will not meet the US Department of Defense’s demands on unrestricted AI use. This comes after a standoff between Amodei and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. here are the details.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei issued a statement on Thursday making it clear that the AI startup will not accede to the US Department of Defense’s demands when it comes to the unrestricted use of AI models. The Anthropic boss claimed that accepting these conditions ‘could undermine rather than protect democratic values.’
The announcement comes after a reported feud between Amodei and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
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Dario Amodei rejects Pentagon demands for use of AI
In the statement, the Anthropic CEO stressed that the company wants AI to be used to protect democratic countries like the United States. However, Dario Amodei believes that current AI technology cannot safely meet the demands of the US military.
“Some uses are even beyond the scope of what can be done safely and reliably with today’s technology,” he said.
US Under Secretary of Defense Says Amodei Has a God Complex
Following Amodei’s announcement, US Under Secretary of Defense Emil Michael criticized the anthropic chief. He claimed that Dario Amodei was a “liar” and had a “godless spirit”. Michael believed that Dario simply wanted to “personally control the US military” by not accepting the US military’s demands.
Michael said that despite Amodei’s claims, the US Department of Defense “will always follow the law.” However, it was “not going to bow to the whims of any one profitable tech company.”
What demands did Anthropic reject?
Two main positions became central to this standoff – mass domestic surveillance and the development of autonomous weapons.
Dario said that while AI systems could be used for legitimate foreign intelligence and counter-intelligence missions, using these systems for large-scale domestic surveillance was “inconsistent with democratic values”.
The Anthropic boss raised concerns that AI could allow authorities to “automatically and massively collect scattered, individually harmless data into a broader picture of any person’s life.”
When it comes to the development of autonomous weapons, Amodei stressed that while these could “prove vital” to national defense in the future, AI systems are not yet “reliable enough” to power fully autonomous weapons.
He acknowledged that allowing such a use case could put American citizens at risk. Amodei stressed that such systems would need to be deployed with proper guardrails, “which do not exist today.”
what happens now?
Anthropic reportedly faced a Friday deadline to meet Pentagon demands. According to reports, the AI startup could be considered a “supply chain risk” if it fails to accept the terms. This would bar Anthropic from working with the US Department of Defense and any defense contractor.
Dario Amodei has said that Anthropic would be willing to allow a transition to another AI provider in the event it is removed from the Pentagon’s network. “If the department wishes to offboard Anthropic, we will work to enable a smooth transition to another provider,” he said.
Axios previously reported that the Pentagon had reached out to defense suppliers, Boeing and Lockheed Martin, to understand their potential reliance on Anthropic’s AI systems.
Anthropic is currently the only company with AI systems running on classified US networks. However according to the report companies like xAI and Google have signed agreements with the US government that allow unrestricted AI use for “all lawful purposes”.
