Svmuu News The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has rejected Anthropic's emergency motion to halt the U.S. Department of Defense's designation of the company as a national security supply chain risk. A three-judge panel ruled on Wednesday that the government's interest in controlling AI technology procurement during an active military conflict outweighs the potential financial or reputational harm Anthropic might suffer.
The dispute stems from a contract negotiated in July 2025 between Anthropic and the Pentagon to deploy its AI model Claude on classified networks. Negotiations broke down in February of this year, with the government demanding that Anthropic allow unrestricted military use of Claude, while Anthropic insisted its technology should not be used for lethal autonomous weapons or large-scale domestic surveillance of U.S. citizens. President Trump ordered all federal agencies to cease using Anthropic products in late February, prompting Anthropic to sue the Trump administration in March.
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California had previously issued a preliminary injunction temporarily halting Trump's order. However, due to provisions in federal procurement law, Anthropic was required to file separate lawsuits in the California district court and the D.C. Circuit Court. The appellate court's ruling acknowledged that Anthropic could suffer some degree of irreparable harm without a stay but stated the case should be expedited. Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche called the ruling a "significant victory for military readiness capabilities."