Google and OpenAI Employees Back Anthropic in Pentagon Defiance via Open Letter

Anthropic has reached an impasse with the U.S. Department of Defense over the military's request for unrestricted access to the AI company's technology. As the Pentagon's Friday deadline for compliance nears, more than 300 Google employees and over 60 OpenAI staffers have signed an open letter urging their leadership to stand with Anthropic and reject the unilateral demand.

Anthropic specifically objects to the use of its AI for domestic mass surveillance and autonomous weapons systems. The letter's signatories call on their companies to "put aside their differences and stand together" in support of the ethical boundaries Anthropic has drawn.

"They're attempting to divide each company by fostering fear that the other will capitulate," the letter states. "That strategy only succeeds if none of us know where the others stand."

The letter explicitly asks executives at Google and OpenAI to uphold Anthropic's red lines against mass surveillance and fully automated weaponry. "We hope our leaders will unite and continue to refuse the Department of Defense's current demands."

The companies' leaders have not yet issued a formal response to the letter. TechCrunch has contacted Google and OpenAI for comment.

However, informal remarks indicate both companies are sympathetic to Anthropic's stance. In a Friday morning CNBC interview, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said he doesn't "personally believe the Pentagon should be threatening to use the DPA against these companies." A CNN reporter confirmed an OpenAI spokesperson aligned the company with Anthropic's red lines on autonomous weapons and mass surveillance.

Google DeepMind has not formally commented on the dispute, but Chief Scientist Jeff Dean, presumably speaking personally, has voiced his opposition to government mass surveillance.

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"Mass surveillance violates the Fourth Amendment and stifles free expression," Dean posted on X. "These systems are easily abused for political or discriminatory aims."

An Axios report indicates the military currently has access to X's Grok, Google's Gemini, and OpenAI's ChatGPT for unclassified work, and is in talks with Google and OpenAI to adapt their technology for classified tasks.

Although Anthropic has an existing partnership with the Pentagon, the AI firm has steadfastly refused to allow its technology to be used for domestic mass surveillance or fully autonomous weapons.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei that if the company does not concede, the Pentagon will either designate Anthropic a "supply chain risk" or invoke the Defense Production Act (DPA) to compel compliance.

In a Thursday statement, Amodei reaffirmed his company's position. "These two threats are contradictory: one brands us a security risk, the other declares Claude essential to national security," the statement reads. "Nevertheless, these threats do not alter our stance: we cannot in good conscience agree to their request."