Court rules Trump can blacklist Anthropic for refusing to enable Claude features

A US appeals court has upheld the Trump administration's decision to blacklist Anthropic, ruling that the government possesses the authority to restrict the company for withholding specific AI features. The 2-1 decision from the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit addresses the complex intersection of national security and artificial intelligence. The court acknowledged the tension between the military's need for reliable AI tools and the risks associated with unconstrained models potentially misidentifying targets. Judges concluded that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth acted within his constitutional and legal authority under the Supply Chain Security Act. The ruling emphasizes that the executive branch must balance the risks of AI performance failures against the dangers of unchecked model behavior. This decision marks a significant legal precedent regarding government control over AI providers, effectively denying Anthropic’s petition to overturn the administration's restrictive measures.