The DC Circuit ruled 2-1 on September 25, 2026 that the Department of War had ample support to treat Claude in its systems as a national-security risk.
- The DC Circuit decided the case on September 25, 2026, ruling 2-1 against Anthropic; Judge Katsas wrote for the majority with Judge Rao, and Judge Henderson dissented.
- The court held the Department had ample support to conclude that continued use of Claude in its systems, by the Department or its contractors, was a covered national-security risk.
- The Department acted after Anthropic refused to relax contract terms barring use of Claude for lethal autonomous warfare or domestic surveillance.
The court accepted the Department of War reasoning that Claude inside its systems, whether used by the Department or by its contractors, can be a covered national-security risk, and one judge dissented. The claims we checked concern the Department and its contractors, so they say nothing about other customers. They do show that a vendor's contract terms on military use can end up deciding whether a supplier may be used at all. If you are a contractor to the Department, ask your legal team whether Claude appears in any system you deliver, and check what your contracts say about model suppliers. Read on →
