“Sloppy and Opportunistic” — OpenAI’s CEO Admits Pentagon Deal Was a Mistake

TLDR

• OpenAI CEO Sam Altman admitted the Pentagon deal was rushed and “looked opportunistic and sloppy”
• OpenAI is revising the deal to clarify its AI tools won’t be used for domestic surveillance of U.S. citizens
• The Pentagon confirmed OpenAI’s tools won’t be used by intelligence agencies like the NSA
• The deal came hours after Trump banned federal agencies from using Anthropic’s AI tools
• Altman publicly called for Anthropic to be offered the same contract terms as OpenAI

OpenAI Revises Pentagon Deal After Backlash, Altman Admits Rushed Rollout

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has admitted the company’s recently announced deal with the U.S. Department of Defense was handled poorly. He shared what he described as an internal memo on X, saying the company “shouldn’t have rushed” to announce the agreement.

The deal was announced last Friday, just hours after President Donald Trump directed federal agencies to stop using Anthropic’s AI tools. It also came hours before the U.S. carried out strikes on Iran.

The timing drew immediate backlash online. Many users reportedly deleted ChatGPT and switched to Anthropic’s Claude app following the announcement.

OpenAI is now working with the Pentagon to revise the contract terms. The changes aim to make the company’s principles clearer in the formal agreement.

Any future services to those agencies would require a separate contract modification, according to Altman.

How the Anthropic Dispute Set the Stage

The situation follows a breakdown in talks between Anthropic and the Defense Department. Anthropic had sought guarantees that its tools would not be used for domestic surveillance or to develop autonomous weapons without human oversight.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Friday that Anthropic would be designated a supply-chain threat after negotiations collapsed. Government officials had for months reportedly criticized Anthropic for being too focused on AI safety.

The dispute became public after it emerged that Anthropic’s Claude AI had been used by the U.S. military during a January raid to capture Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro. Anthropic did not publicly object to that use at the time.

Anthropic was actually the first AI lab to deploy models on the Defense Department’s classified network, following an initial deal last year.

Altman Calls for Equal Treatment of Anthropic

Altman used his post to also address the fallout for Anthropic directly. He said he had spoken to officials over the weekend and pushed back against the supply-chain threat designation.

Anthropic was founded in 2021 by former OpenAI employees who left over disagreements about the company’s direction.

It has positioned itself as a safety-focused AI company. The Pentagon has not yet responded publicly to Altman’s call for equal terms.

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