Microsoft Backs Anthropic Suit Against DoD AI Risk Label

Microsoft has joined a chorus of tech industry voices supporting Anthropic's legal challenge against the U.S. Department of Defense, filing a court brief on March 10, 2026, to urge a federal judge in San Francisco to temporarily block the Pentagon's designation of the AI company as a supply chain risk. The move by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, announced last week, restricts federal agencies from procuring or using Anthropic's Claude AI technology, escalating a dispute that began during failed contract negotiations earlier this month.

The conflict centers on Anthropic's refusal to lift ethical restrictions on its AI model, which prohibit its use for mass domestic surveillance of U.S. citizens or the development of fully autonomous lethal weapons. Officials said the Pentagon had been in talks with Anthropic for a $200 million contract to deploy Claude on classified military systems amid preparations for operations related to the conflict with Iran. Negotiations broke down when Anthropic insisted on maintaining these safeguards, citing concerns that the technology lacks the reliability needed for such high-stakes applications. In response, Hegseth invoked Section 3252 of Title...