US President Donald Trump has instructed all federal agencies to stop using products made by Anthropic, escalating a public confrontation between the White House and one of the country’s leading artificial intelligence developers. The order, announced on Friday, directs government departments to begin removing the company’s tools and to complete the phase-out within six months. The decision follows a breakdown in negotiations between the company’s leadership and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, who has accused the firm of posing a “supply chain risk”. Such a designation would effectively block contractors working with the military from using Anthropic’s technology, a step that would be unprecedented for a major US technology company. Anthropic, led by chief executive Dario Amodei, has resisted government demands to allow its systems to be used for any military purpose, citing concerns that its technology could enable mass surveillance or fully autonomous weapons. The company said it has not yet received any formal notice from the authorities and confirmed it would challenge any supply-chain ruling in court. Officials at the United States Department of War have insisted that any company supplying artificial intelligence tools to defence and security programmes must accept “lawful use” by the military. The administration […]