Federal Judge Blocks Pentagon From Labeling Anthropic a National Security Threat

This past week, a federal judge in San Francisco blocked the Pentagon and the Trump administration from enforcing a national security designation against Anthropic, the artificial intelligence (AI) company that refused to remove safety restrictions from its Claude models.

Negotiations broke down in late 2025. The conflict became public through CEO Dario Amodei’s written statements and an essay outlining the company’s position on AI safety. DoD officials viewed the restrictions as Anthropic attempting to dictate government policy.

In a 43-page order, Judge Lin enjoined the DoD, 17 other federal agencies, and Secretary Hegseth from implementing or enforcing any of the challenged actions. She ordered restoration of the status quo, allowing Anthropic to continue existing federal contracts and partnerships.

On due process, the court found the government had stripped Anthropic of liberty interests in its reputation and business operations without providing pre-deprivation notice or a hearing. Lin also found that the statutory designation had never before been applied to an American company under these circumstances and that prior government vetting of Anthropic.

This includes Top Secret clearances, FedRAMP authorization, and contracts worth up to $200 million — showed no genuine security concern. “Nothing in the governing statute supports the Orwellian notion that an American company may be branded a potential adversary and saboteur of the U.S. for expressing disagreement with the government,” Lin wrote.

The injunction does not resolve the underlying contract dispute. No final merits decision has been issued. A separate challenge in the D.C. Circuit remains pending, and the administration retains the option to appeal.