Anthropic’s Claude AI will remain accessible to non-defence users, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon confirm

Enterprises and startups using Anthropic's Claude through Microsoft and Google products do not need to worry that the model will suddenly be removed from their reach, according to confirmations from both Microsoft and Google. AWS customers and partners are reportedly still able to use Claude for workloads not related to defence.

Microsoft was the first major technology company to reassure customers that Anthropic's models would remain available through its services, even as the Trump administration's Department of War — formally called the Department of Defence — intensified its dispute with Anthropic.

On Thursday, the Defence Department officially labelled the U.S. AI startup a supply-chain risk after Anthropic refused to provide unrestricted access to its technology for uses the company said its AI systems could not safely support, including mass surveillance and fully autonomous weapons.

That kind of supply-chain risk designation is usually applied to foreign adversaries. In Anthropic's case, the move means the Pentagon will not be able to use the company's products once Claude is transitioned off its systems. It also means that any company or agency working with the Pentagon must certify that it is not using Anthropic's models either. Anthropic has stated its intention to challenge the designation in court.

Microsoft provides a wide range of products, from Office software to cloud services, to numerous federal agencies, including the Defence Department. A spokesperson for Microsoft said the company will continue to make Anthropic's models available within Microsoft products and to its customers.

"Our lawyers have studied the designation and have concluded that Anthropic products, including Claude, can remain available to our customers — other than the Department of War — through platforms such as M365, GitHub, and Microsoft's AI Foundry, and that we can continue to work with Anthropic on non-defence related projects," the spokesperson said in an email. CNBC first reported the comment.

Google, which also sells cloud, AI, and productivity tools to federal agencies, confirmed that it too will continue offering Claude to customers through its platforms.

"We understand that the Determination does not preclude us from working with Anthropic on non-defence related projects, and their products remain available through our platforms, like Google Cloud," a Google spokesperson said.

CNBC also reported that AWS customers and partners can continue using Claude for workloads unrelated to defence.

That aligns with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei's statement, in which he promised to fight the designation.

"With respect to our customers, it plainly applies only to the use of Claude by customers as a direct part of contracts with the Department of War, not all use of Claude by customers who have such contracts," Amodei said, adding, "Even for Department of War contractors, the supply chain risk designation doesn't (and can't) limit uses of Claude or business relationships with Anthropic if those are unrelated to their specific Department of War contracts."

Meanwhile, Claude's growth among consumers has continued to accelerate following Anthropic's refusal to comply with the department's demands.