Pentagon’s AI battle will help decide who controls our most powerful military tech

I spent decades wrong the Pentagon watching exertion reshape warfare. I saw precision munitions alteration the battlefield. I watched satellites compress determination cycles. But thing compares to what is happening now.

Artificial quality has moved the laboratory to the termination chain.

And the showdown betwixt Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and AI steadfast Anthropic is not a declaration dispute. It is the opening conflict implicit who controls the astir almighty subject exertion of the 21st century.

AI is already transforming war

Look astatine Ukraine.

Anthropic enactment refused demands from the Department of War to usage its artificial quality for "all lawful purposes" aft the Maduro raid. (Eduardo Munoz/Reuters:AHIKAM SERI/AFP via Getty Images)

Western officials study that drones present relationship for astir 70-80% of battlefield casualties successful that war. But the existent gyration occurs erstwhile AI is added. Reports bespeak AI-guided navigation tin summation drone onslaught accuracy from 10–20% to arsenic precocious arsenic 70–80%.

That is not incremental change. That is simply a translation successful battlefield lethality.

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The aforesaid dynamic is emerging successful U.S. operations involving Iran and different theaters. AI tools are being utilized for quality analysis, targeting refinement, signifier recognition, and operational simulations. These systems compress time, trim uncertainty and accelerate decisions.

AI is not theoretical. It is operational.

Which brings america to Washington.

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What the Hegseth–Anthropic standoff is truly about

On Feb. 27, Hegseth designated Anthropic a "supply concatenation hazard to nationalist security." President Donald Trump ordered national agencies to cease utilizing its Claude AI exemplary aft Anthropic refused to region 2 guardrails:

A prohibition connected afloat autonomous weapons.

A prohibition connected wide home surveillance.

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Artificial quality has moved the laboratory to the termination chain.

The Pentagon argues that subject commanders indispensable beryllium capable to usage AI tools for each lawful defence purposes without seeking support from a backstage institution successful existent time.

Anthropic argues that removing safeguards could alteration autonomous sidesplitting systems oregon unconstitutional home spying.

Both concerns are legitimate.

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But present is the deeper problem: America has outsourced strategical power of its astir delicate subject algorithms to backstage contractors.

Anthropic Co-founder and CEO Dario Amodei speaks astatine the "How AI Will Transform Business successful the Next 18 Months" sheet during INBOUND 2025 Powered by HubSpot astatine Moscone Center connected Sept. 4, 2025, successful San Francisco, California. (Chance Yeh/Getty Images for HubSpot)

That is unsustainable.

Draw the close line

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Let maine beryllium wide astir what indispensable not happen.

We indispensable not grow home surveillance of American citizens nether the banner of AI efficiency. The Fourth Amendment does not vanish successful the property of algorithms.

Second, we indispensable support a quality being successful the termination chain. I served nether lawful bid authority. Life-and-death decisions transportation motivation accountability. They cannot beryllium delegated wholly to autonomous systems.

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Those are steadfast boundaries.

But present is the different boundary: nary backstage corp should clasp an effectual veto implicit however America defends itself.

Washington’s contractor addiction

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For decades, the national authorities has grown babelike connected contractors for captious defence functions — logistics, cyber infrastructure, analytics and quality support. AI is simply the adjacent frontier successful that pattern.

But frontier AI models are not spare parts oregon uniforms. They are strategical infrastructure. They power targeting, operational tempo and perchance deterrence modeling.

CEO of Anthropic Dario Amodei, laminitis of the Mila-Quebec AI Institute and prof of machine subject astatine the University of California, Berkeley, Stuart Russell are sworn successful during a proceeding earlier the Privacy, Technology, and the Law Subcommittee of Senate Judiciary Committee connected Capitol Hill connected July 25, 2023, successful Washington, DC. The subcommittee held a proceeding connected "Oversight of A.I.: Principles for Regulation." (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

That level of sensitivity cannot stay nether firm ownership.

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During World War II, the United States built the atomic weaponry done the Manhattan Project nether centralized nationalist authority. It was not governed by venture-backed boards mounting autarkic usage policies. It was directed by the U.S. authorities with a wide strategical mandate.

We request a akin mindset for our astir delicate AI systems.

Government indispensable ain halfway subject algorithms. Not lease them. Not subscribe to them. Own them.

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AI tools are being utilized for quality analysis, targeting refinement, signifier recognition, and operational simulations. These systems compress time, trim uncertainty and accelerate decisions.

If AI is the caller strategical precocious ground, America cannot subcontract the precocious ground.

China isn’t hesitating

As I reason successful "The New AI Cold War," Beijing does not conflict with these dilemmas.

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China fuses AI improvement straight to the state. There are nary Silicon Valley executives successful Beijing refusing subject access. AI is treated arsenic nationalist infrastructure.

Russia and different nations are moving successful akin directions. They are not debating interior guardrails portion field-testing AI-enabled systems.

Strategic contention does not intermission portion we litigate declaration language.

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What indispensable hap next

First, Congress indispensable gully agleam lines: nary AI-enabled wide home surveillance of Americans without strict law safeguards.

Second, codify meaningful quality power implicit lethal unit decisions.

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Third — and astir critically — physique sovereign AI capableness wrong government.

That means:

• Government-controlled AI probe for classified applications
• Government ownership of halfway defence algorithms

Anthropic argues that removing safeguards could alteration autonomous sidesplitting systems oregon unconstitutional home spying.

Reduced reliance connected backstage frontier labs for delicate subject systems

Long-term pipelines of cleared AI engineers

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Private manufacture volition proceed to innovate. But America’s astir delicate warfighting tools cannot stay babelike connected companies whose firm policies tin override nationalist defence requirements.

The existent contented is sovereignty

The Pentagon–Anthropic feud is not astir personalities. It is astir sovereignty.

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Who controls the algorithms that usher American force?

Who owns the code?

Who decides however it is used?

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In the New AI Cold War, powerfulness volition beryllium to those who power the models — not simply those who rent entree to them.

America indispensable support liberty. We indispensable cull AI-driven home surveillance. We indispensable sphere quality motivation accountability successful the usage of force.

First, Congress indispensable gully agleam lines: nary AI-enabled wide home surveillance of Americans without strict law safeguards.

But we indispensable besides extremity the illusion that venture-backed firms tin relation arsenic eventual gatekeepers of nationalist defense.

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The AI Cold War is not hypothetical. It is unfolding connected battlefields overseas and successful argumentation fights astatine home.

This infinitesimal is not astir 1 company. It is astir whether the United States volition dainty artificial quality arsenic strategical nationalist infrastructure — oregon arsenic a contractor service.

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The reply volition signifier the adjacent procreation of warfare.

And past volition not hold for america to decide.

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