Anthropic has formally declined to comply with specific AI development mandates from the U.S. Department of Defense, citing ethical and operational concerns. Meanwhile, OpenAI has closed a $110 billion fundraising round, marking one of the largest tech financings in history.
- Anthropic declined Department of Defense AI mandates related to real-time surveillance and data sharing.
- The company cited ethical concerns and alignment with AI safety principles as reasons for refusal.
- OpenAI raised $110 billion in a single funding round, valuing the company above $240 billion.
- Funds will support expansion of AI infrastructure and development of enterprise AI services.
- Anthropic's decision may shape future AI startup engagement with military and government contracts.
- OpenAI's financing reinforces its leadership in generative AI amid growing competition.
Anthropic, the AI research firm co-founded by former OpenAI executives, announced it will not proceed with a Defense Department initiative requiring real-time surveillance model integration and data sharing with classified military systems. The decision follows internal review and alignment with the company’s AI safety principles, emphasizing that certain military applications conflict with its stated mission of developing reliable and trustworthy artificial intelligence. The move comes amid growing scrutiny over defense-contracted AI deployment, particularly in autonomous systems. Anthropic cited potential risks related to model transparency, attribution, and unintended escalation in conflict scenarios as key factors in its refusal. The company affirmed its continued collaboration with federal agencies on non-sensitive AI applications, such as climate modeling and healthcare diagnostics, but underscored that it will not serve as a direct contractor for combat-related AI programs. In a parallel development, OpenAI confirmed the successful closure of a $110 billion private funding round, led by a consortium of global tech investors and sovereign wealth funds. The capital injection values the company at over $240 billion, reinforcing its position as a dominant force in generative AI. The funds will be allocated toward expanding compute infrastructure, advancing multimodal models, and launching new AI-powered enterprise services in finance, education, and logistics. Market analysts note that OpenAI’s massive financing underscores investor confidence in AI’s long-term scalability, despite increasing regulatory pressure in the U.S. and EU. The funding also intensifies competition with Microsoft, Google, and Meta, which have each committed tens of billions to their own AI initiatives. Meanwhile, Anthropic’s stance may influence how other AI startups navigate government partnerships and ethical boundaries.