.png){kind=logo}
Anthropic's Claude has received huge support from users in its fight with the US Department of Defence (DoD). Claude AI has climbed to the No.1 position on the App Store amid user reactions to OpenAI’s Pentagon deal. It signals a shift in competitive dynamics within the AI app market.
OpenAI locked down a deal with the Pentagon to deploy its technology on the Department of Defense's classified network.
Following the deal, Anthropic's Claude received significant support on social media, and the AI chatbot is now ranked number one on Apple’s App Store in the free apps category.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman confirmed on X that the company has signed a deal with the US government to use its models for classified work.
“Two of our most important safety principles are prohibitions on domestic mass surveillance and human responsibility for the use of force, including for autonomous weapon systems. The DoD agrees with these principles, reflects them in law and policy, and we put them into our agreement,” Altman noted.
OpenAI has faced flak on social media after the company's deal with the Department of Defense. Users on platforms like Reddit and X have even called for the cancellation of ChatGPT subscriptions.
American singer Katy Perry, for instance, put out a post on X with the caption ‘Done’, while the image showed her purchasing Anthropic's subscription with a heart in it.
A user on Reddit, clearly not impressed by the OpenAI deal, wrote, "I think it's time to burn any bridges we had with ChatGPT, cancel your subscription, and delete it too, obviously. Also, start leaving bad reviews on the Play Store and App Store. And if you have to, use an open weights model!”
One such user wrote, "This was a calculated business decision to chase government money at the expense of everything they promised when they asked for your trust and your subscription. You can be done with them in 15 minutes. And you can make the last month hurt a little on your way out.”
In a Truth Social post about ending the deal with Anthropic, US President Donald Trump had gone on to call the company ‘leftwing nut jobs’ and ‘woke’ while claiming that ‘their selfishness is putting AMERICAN LIVES at risk, our Troops in danger, and our National Security in JEOPARDY.’
Trump had directed all US federal agencies to ‘immediately cease’ using Anthropic technology.
“We don’t need it, we don’t want it, and will not do business with them again! There will be a six-month phase-out period for agencies like the Department of War that are using Anthropic’s products at various levels,” he wrote.
Anthropic has challenged the US designation of the company as a ‘supply chain risk’ and said it will contest it in court.
“Designating Anthropic as a supply chain risk would be an unprecedented action—one historically reserved for US adversaries, never before publicly applied to an American company. We are deeply saddened by these developments. As the first frontier AI company to deploy models in the US government’s classified networks, Anthropic has supported American warfighters since June 2024 and has every intention of continuing to do so,” the company wrote in a blog post.
Also Read: US Military Used Claude AI After Trump’s Anthropic Ban, Claims Report
Anthropic differed from other AI firms due to its safety-conscious business model. CEO Dario Amodei has always been against the Trump administration using the AI tool for spying on American citizens or to power killer robots that can eliminate people without human input.
As debates over defense partnerships and corporate ethics intensify, trust and transparency may become defining factors in platform adoption, shaping the next phase of rivalry between leading AI developers.
