Month: March 2026

Artificial intelligence company Anthropic filed lawsuits Monday against the United States Department of Defense and several other federal agencies after the government moved to block the company’s technology from being used for defense-related work. The lawsuit names several departments and officials as defendants, including the Treasury, State and Commerce Departments along with figures such as Scott Bessent, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Kristi Noem.

The legal fight follows a decision by the Pentagon to classify the firm as a national security supply-chain risk. Shortly afterward, Pres. Trump announced that federal agencies should stop using the company’s AI systems altogether. Anthropic responded by launching two separate court actions—one in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and another with the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The company argues the government’s actions are not a routine contract disagreement but an attempt to punish the firm for its stance on how its technology should be used.

The filing said in part that “the Constitution does not allow the government to wield its enormous power to punish a company for its protected speech. No federal statute authorizes the actions taken here. Anthropic turns to the judiciary as a last resort to vindicate its rights and halt the Executive’s unlawful campaign of retaliation.”

At the center of the dispute is Anthropic’s flagship AI system, Claude, which has been deployed on classified government networks to assist with intelligence analysis, targeting suggestions and battlefield simulations. The technology has also supported data analysis and administrative tasks across several agencies, often through partnerships with firms such as Palantir Technologies. Tensions grew as Anthropic pushed for stronger limits on how the military could deploy its AI. The company sought guarantees that Claude would not be used to power lethal autonomous weapons or conduct mass surveillance on Americans. Defense officials, however, insisted the system should be available for “all lawful use.”

Negotiations between the two sides ultimately stalled ahead of a Feb. 27 deadline set by the Pentagon. After talks broke down, Trump ordered federal agencies “to IMMEDIATELY CEASE all use of Anthropic’s technology.” Soon after, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Pentagon would formally classify the company as a “Supply-Chain Risk to National Security,” cutting it off from defense contracts.

Anthropic argues the move is unprecedented for a U.S. company and claims the designation—typically reserved for foreign adversaries—was applied without proper procedure: “Anthropic’s contracts with the federal government are already being canceled. Current and future contracts with private parties are also in doubt, jeopardizing hundreds of millions of dollars in the near-term,” the company’s lawsuit said.

The legal complaint further claims the government’s actions threaten the company’s reputation and free-speech protections while damaging broader discussions about the responsible use of artificial intelligence in warfare and surveillance. Anthropic is asking the courts to block the Pentagon’s order and rule that the president lacked the authority to force agencies across the federal government to sever ties with the company.

Anthropic says it remains open to discussions with federal officials, but believed that court intervention was necessary to stop the bans from taking effect until the dispute is resolved.

Editorial credit: jackpress / Shutterstock.com

Live Nation, the parent company of Ticketmaster, has reached a major settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve a federal antitrust lawsuit accusing the company of dominating the live entertainment industry and limiting competition.

The lawsuit was originally filed in 2024 by federal prosecutors and dozens of state attorneys general, with the case seeking to dismantle Live Nation’s control over the live music ecosystem, which critics say stretches from artist management and concert promotion to venue ownership and ticket sales. The company has consistently denied wrongdoing, maintaining that artists ultimately set ticket prices and decide how tickets are distributed.

The settlement requires Live Nation to overhaul several of its business practices while paying hundreds of millions of dollars to states that joined the case. As part of the deal, Live Nation will pay roughly $200 million to $280 million in penalties and damages to the 40 states involved in the case. The company must also sell at least 13 amphitheaters—more than 10% of its holdings—to reduce its influence over concert venues. Investigators had previously alleged the company controlled about 78% of major amphitheaters across the country.

The deal also introduces several changes aimed at opening the ticket marketplace to competitors. Ticketmaster will be required to allow other companies to access its technology so they can sell tickets through its platform. Third-party sellers such as SeatGeek and Eventbrite will now be able to list tickets directly within the system.

In addition, venues will no longer be locked into exclusive long-term agreements with Ticketmaster. They will be able to work with multiple ticketing providers, and artists will no longer be required to sell tickets solely through the platform. The settlement also caps service fees for amphitheater tickets at 15% of the ticket’s face value and prohibits Live Nation from retaliating against venues that choose other ticketing partners.

A senior Justice Department official said the changes should create meaningful competition in an industry that has long been criticized by fans and performers: “we’re very excited about this settlement, because it basically opens up markets for other competitors, which will allow for competition that previously didn’t exist in primary ticketing and in the live entertainment space,” the official said, adding the reforms should “have a direct impact on prices coming down.”

However, the agreement has not been universally accepted. More than two dozen states have expressed concerns and plan to continue pursuing the lawsuit, arguing the settlement does not go far enough to break the company’s dominance. New York Attorney General Letitia James said the deal “fails to address the monopoly at the center of this case.” In a separate statement, she added, “The settlement recently announced with the U.S. Department of Justice fails to address the monopoly at the center of this case, and would benefit Live Nation at the expense of consumers. We cannot agree to it.”

While the settlement allows Live Nation to keep Ticketmaster, regulators say the new restrictions and required asset sales are intended to loosen the company’s grip on the live entertainment marketplace and give competitors a greater chance to operate.

Editorial credit: jackpress / Shutterstock.com