Microsoft: Anthropic Claude remains available to customers except the Defense Department

Enterprises and startups that usage Anthropic Claude done Microsoft’s products request not fearfulness that the exemplary volition beryllium ripped from their reach, Microsoft has confirmed to TechCrunch and different publications.

Microsoft is the archetypal large tech institution to connection assurance that Anthropic’s models volition stay disposable to its customers adjacent though the Trump Administration’s Department of War — formally known arsenic the Department of Defense — has escalated its feud with Anthropic.

The Defense Department designated the American AI startup arsenic a proviso concatenation hazard aft the AI institution refused to springiness it unrestricted entree to its tech for applications the institution said its AI could not safely support, specified arsenic wide surveillance and afloat autonomous weapons.

The supply-chain hazard designation is typically reserved for overseas adversaries. For Anthropic, the designation means that the Pentagon can’t usage the company’s products — and besides requires immoderate institution oregon bureau that works with the Pentagon to certify that they don’t usage Anthropic’s models, either. Anthropic has vowed to combat the designation successful court.

Microsoft sells an array of products, from Office to its cloud, to galore national agencies including the Defense Department. A Microsoft spokesperson said that the institution volition proceed making Anthropic’s models disposable wrong its ain products and to Microsoft customers.

“Our lawyers person studied the designation and person concluded that Anthropic products, including Claude, tin stay disposable to our customers — different than the Department of War — done platforms specified arsenic M365, GitHub, and Microsoft’s AI Foundry, and that we tin proceed to enactment with Anthropic connected non-defense related projects,” the spokesperson said successful an email. CNBC first reported connected the comment.

This echoes what Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said successful his connection vowing to combat the designation.

“With respect to our customers, it plainly applies lone to the usage of Claude by customers as a nonstop portion of contracts with the Department of War, not each usage of Claude by customers who person specified contracts,” Amodei said, adding, “Even for Department of War contractors, the proviso concatenation hazard designation doesn’t (and can’t) bounds uses of Claude oregon concern relationships with Anthropic if those are unrelated to their circumstantial Department of War contracts.”

In the meantime, Claude’s consumer maturation surge has continued aft Anthropic refused to springiness successful to the department’s demands.