The National Security Agency is using Anthropic's artificial intelligence tool despite a formal War Department supply-chain risk warning against the company, Axios reported Sunday.
Anthropic filed a lawsuit in early March against multiple federal agencies after the War Department cut off the company in February and directed contractors and partners to stop doing business with it. The rare "supply chain risk" designation effectively blacklists Anthropic from U.S. military business and has sparked a legal fight over AI safety and government control.
Two sources told Axios the NSA was using Mythos Preview, while another said the model was used more widely within the intelligence community.
It's unclear how the NSA, which is overseen by the Pentagon, is using Mythos, but other organizations with access use it primarily to scan their environments for exploitable security vulnerabilities.
Anthropic restricted access to Mythos to about 40 organizations, saying its offensive cyber capabilities were too dangerous for wider release. The company has publicly identified only 12 of those organizations. One source told Axios the NSA was among the unnamed agencies with access.
The NSA's counterparts in the U.K. say they have access to the model through the country's AI Security Institute.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei met Friday with White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. The discussion focused on the government's use of Mythos, as well as Anthropic's broader plans and security practices.
Sources told Axios the next steps are expected to focus on how agencies outside the Pentagon engage with the model. Both sides described the meeting as productive.
Anthropic and the Pentagon declined to comment to Axios. The NSA and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence did not respond to requests for comment.
The War Department and Anthropic clashed during tense contract renegotiations earlier this year. The War Department demanded that Anthropic make its Claude AI model available for "all lawful purposes," while the company insisted on restricting uses such as mass domestic surveillance and the development of autonomous weapons.
Some War Department officials still say Anthropic's stance shows it cannot be relied on when the military needs it, a claim the company has denied.
Others in the administration want the dispute resolved so they can use Anthropic's cutting-edge tools.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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