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The U.S. military used Anthropic’s artificial-intelligence tool Claude during the operation that captured Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, according to a report.
Last month, U.S. special operations forces captured Maduro and his wife, who were brought to the U.S. to face sweeping narcotics charges.
Claude was deployed through Anthropic’s partnership with data company Palantir Technologies, whose tools are widely used by the Defense Department and federal law enforcement, according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited people familiar with the matter.
“We cannot comment on whether Claude, or any other AI model, was used for any specific operation, classified or otherwise,” an Anthropic spokesperson told Digital. “Any use of Claude — whether in the private sector or across government — is required to comply with our Usage Policies, which govern how Claude can be deployed. We work closely with our partners to ensure compliance.”
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Captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is escorted, as he heads towards the Daniel Patrick Manhattan United States Courthouse for an initial appearance to face U.S. federal charges including narco-terrorism, conspiracy, drug trafficking, money laundering and others in New York City, U.S., January 5, 2026. (Adam Gray/Reuters)
Anthropic’s usage guidelines prohibit Claude from being used for violence, weapons development, or surveillance.
A source familiar with the matter told Digital that Anthropic has visibility into classified and unclassified usage and has confidence that all usage has been in line with Anthropic’s usage policy, as well as its partners’ own compliance policies.
Reached by Digital, the Department of War declined to comment.
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The U.S. military reportedly used Anthropic’s AI tool Claude during the operation that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Anthropic was the first AI model developer to be used in classified operations by the Department of War, according to the Journal.
Anthropic has raised concerns about how Claude can be used by the Pentagon, prompting officials within the Trump administration to consider canceling its contract worth up to $200 million, which was awarded last summer, the paper reported.
The AI tools can be used for everything from summarizing documents to controlling autonomous drones, the outlet noted.
The Trump administration has prioritized AI development, and in December War Secretary Pete Hegseth said “the future of American warfare is here, and it’s spelled AI.”
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Anthropic’s artificial-intelligence model Claude was reportedly used in a classified U.S. military operation targeting Nicolás Maduro. (Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)
“As technologies advance, so do our adversaries,” he said. “But here at the War Department, we are not sitting idly by.”
