Tech workers and labs challenge Pentagon demands on AI use

Anthropic is in a high-profile standoff with the U.S. Defense Department over demands for unrestricted access to its AI systems, prompting debates about how military agencies should be allowed to use advanced models. Hundreds of employees at Google and OpenAI have signed open letters backing Anthropic’s position and urging clear ‘red lines’ against applications like autonomous weapons, mass surveillance, and disinformation. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has publicly aligned with Anthropic’s constraints, while Google highlights its research-driven AI risk and governance efforts, signaling a broader push within the industry for ethical limits on government and defense AI projects. This clash is rapidly becoming a test case for how much control tech companies and their workers can exert over powerful customers’ uses of AI.