OpenAI's Altman tries to mediate Pentagon-Anthropic standoff
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is trying to cool things down between the Pentagon and Anthropic, an AI company.
The dispute escalated after Anthropic refused to loosen its AI safeguards that block US mass surveillance and autonomous weapons.
While Altman says OpenAI shares these worries, he said OpenAI is in talks with the Pentagon and wants to reach a consensus to avoid setting a dangerous industrywide precedent.
Implications of the standoff
This fight isn't just about one company—it's about who gets to decide how powerful AI is used.
Anthropic's model is currently the only one cleared for classified Pentagon work, but that goes against White House rules meant to prevent single-vendor dependence.
If the Pentagon labels Anthropic a supply chain risk or uses emergency powers, it could cut them off entirely and give more control over AI decisions to government officials.
As Altman puts it, "a private US company cannot be more powerful than the democratically-elected US government,"—a reminder that big tech and public policy are still figuring out their boundaries.