Oppose Pentagon Restrictions That Would Force Tech Companies to Choose Between Military Contracts and AI Tool Selection

I am writing to urge you to protect technology companies from being forced to choose between doing business with the US military and maintaining the ability to select the most appropriate AI tools for their work. Recent reporting by the Wall Street Journal revealed that Anthropic's Claude AI model was used during a US military operation in Venezuela that resulted in 83 deaths, according to Venezuela's defense ministry. This use appears to violate Anthropic's terms of service, which prohibit using their AI for violent purposes, weapons development, or surveillance. Claude was reportedly accessed through Anthropic's partnership with Palantir Technologies, a defense contractor, raising serious questions about how AI companies can enforce their usage policies when their technology is deployed through third-party partnerships. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth stated in January that the Pentagon wouldn't "employ AI models that won't allow you to fight wars," signaling potential pressure on AI companies to remove usage restrictions. This creates an untenable situation for technology companies that work with the federal government across numerous civilian agencies and programs. Most major tech companies have extensive contracts with federal agencies for legitimate purposes like research, infrastructure, and public services. Forcing these companies to choose between maintaining ethical AI usage policies and retaining all government contracts would effectively coerce them into abandoning responsible AI development standards. The Pentagon has alternatives. It announced collaboration with xAI in January and uses custom versions of Google's Gemini and OpenAI systems. The defense department can work with companies willing to provide unrestricted AI access rather than pressuring companies with ethical guidelines to abandon their principles. I ask you to ensure that federal contracting policies do not penalize technology companies for maintaining usage restrictions on their AI models. Companies should be able to participate in civilian government work without being compelled to make their AI available for military operations that violate their terms of service. Please support legislation or oversight measures that protect this distinction.