Pentagon Declares US Military an ‘AI-First’ Force, Signs Deals with Eight Tech Giants
The US Pentagon announced on Friday that it has entered into eight new artificial intelligence agreements with Google, OpenAI, Amazon, Microsoft, SpaceX, Oracle, Nvidia, and startup Reflection, marking a significant shift toward making the US military an “AI-first” fighting force.
Under the agreements, AI technology will now be authorized for any “lawful operational use,” the Pentagon said in a statement. “These agreements accelerate the transformation [of] the US military as an AI-first fighting force.”
Conspicuously absent from the partnership list is Anthropic. The company has publicly expressed concerns about its AI tools being used for warfare and mass domestic surveillance, and refused to accept “any lawful use” language in its contract. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth subsequently labeled Anthropic a “supply chain risk,” effectively banning it from government use. Anthropic is now suing the government over the decision, with the case expected to go to court in September.
The Pentagon emphasized that partnering with multiple AI companies would help it avoid “vendor lock” — becoming too dependent on a single technology provider. “Access to a diverse suite of AI capabilities from across the resilient American technology stack will give warfighters the tools they need to act with confidence and safeguard the nation against any threat,” the department said.
More than one million people across the defense department have used the military’s AI platform since its launch last year, helping to reduce the time required for many tasks “from months to days,” the Pentagon noted.
OpenAI was the first company to ink a new deal with the Pentagon in the wake of the Anthropic dispute, signing a contract at the end of February. A company spokeswoman said Friday’s announcement was simply a formalization of that existing agreement. “As we said when we first announced our agreement several months ago, we believe the people defending the United States should have the best tools in the world,” she said.
While Google’s Gemini was already in use by some government departments, this marks the first time the chatbot will handle classified government work. Earlier this week, hundreds of Google employees, including many from DeepMind — the division responsible for much of the company’s AI development — sent a letter to CEO Sundar Pichai urging the company not to deepen its work with the government.
Anthropic’s tools, including a version of its Claude chatbot, remain in use across many US government and defense agencies, as it was the first AI company deployed for classified work. However, the breakdown in relations has opened the door for rival companies to expand their government partnerships.
The series of agreements underscores the growing importance of AI in modern warfare. With the Iran conflict ongoing, cyber warfare and AI-assisted decision-making have become critical components of military operations.
Source: BBC News, The Guardian, Reuters