Hours after the US Department of War officially designated Anthropic a ‘nation security risk’, CEO Dario Amodei has apologised for comments he made in an internal memo last week. In an interview with The Economist, Amodei said he “want to apologize” for the memo that was written on Friday, February 27 after a series of events involving the US government and artificial intelligence companies, Anthropic and OpenAI which he described as “the most disorienting time” in Anthropic history. He said the company was reacting to multiple events that unfolded quickly and created confusion within the organisation. Amodei explained that the message was posted internally and was not intended to be a carefully prepared statement.“I want to completely apologize for this memo,” he said during the interview.
Events that led to the controversy
Anthropic and the Pentagon have been involved in a public dispute over use of its AI technology for military purposes. The department has given a ‘Friday’ ultimatum to the company last week.In the interview, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei specifically pointed out three incidents. First was US President Donald Trump’s post on social media about removing Anthropic services from federal government use.He then cited the US Secretary of War tweet designating Anthropic “a supply chain risk”. The company later said the designation that was eventually applied was narrower than what was initially suggested in public messages.Another development mentioned by Amodei was a defence agreement involving another AI company and the Pentagon. The agreement was announced in less than a day and involved OpenAI, led by Sam Altman.The interview highlighted that the defence deal moved quickly, while Anthropic’s response and internal discussions unfolded over several days. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei says he is open to speaking with the administrationWhen asked whether he will apologize directly to Donald Trump, Amodei said he had apologised to officials he had spoken with inside the government. “I’ve apologised to the people that I talked to within the government,” he said, adding that he would be willing to discuss the matter further with others in the administration.
Pentagon officially designated as ‘nation security risk’
Anthropic has been officially designated as “nation security risk” in America, becoming the first US company to get the label. In an official statement, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said that the AI firm now has no choice but to challenge the supply chain risk designation. “Yesterday (March 4) Anthropic received a letter from the Department of War confirming that we have been designated as a supply chain risk to America’s national security,” Amodei said in the statement. “As we wrote on Friday (February 27), we do not believe this action is legally sound, and we see no choice but to challenge it in court,” he added.
