February 14, 2026, 11:17 amFebruary 14, 2026, 11:17 am
According to a media report, AI software from OpenAI rival Anthropic was used in the US military operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. The Pentagon accessed Anthropic’s ChatGPT competitor Claude using software from the data analysis company Palantir, wrote the Wall Street Journal, citing informed people.
Claude will be available on the Palantir platform following a collaboration agreement in 2024. Palantir’s technology, which combines and evaluates data from various sources, is widely used by US security authorities.
Exactly what the Anthropic software was used for in the military operation remained unclear. Claude, like ChatGPT, can, among other things, analyze documents and summarize information. At the same time, Anthropic’s usage guidelines prohibit the use of Claude for violence, weapons development or surveillance.
Anthropic insists on usage rules
Anthropic said it could not comment on whether Claude was deployed in a specific operation. At the same time, the company emphasized that any use – whether in the private sector or by governments – must remain within the scope of the usage guidelines. We are working with our partners to ensure this.
Anthropic boss Dario Amodei warns of the risks of artificial intelligence and – unlike many of his colleagues – advocates for more guidelines in AI development. That also put him on a collision course with White House AI envoy David Sacks.
Hegseth wants AI for war
Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in January that the Pentagon did not want to use AI models “that do not allow wars to be waged”. The ministry also concluded a contract with Elon Musk’s AI company xAI to use their software.
After the US operation in the capital Caracas at the beginning of January, Maduro and his wife were brought to New York, where they are to be tried on drug charges. (hkl/sda/dpa)