Anthropic’s artificial-intelligence tool Claude was used in the U.S. military’s operation to capture former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on January 3, 2026, highlighting how AI models are gaining traction in the Pentagon. The mission to capture Maduro and his wife included bombing several sites in Caracas in January 2026. Anthropic’s usage guidelines prohibit Claude from being used to facilitate violence, develop weapons or conduct surveillance. The deployment of Claude occurred through Anthropic’s partnership with data company Palantir, whose tools are commonly used by the Defense Department and federal law enforcement

Excerpt from Pentagon Used Anthropic’s Claude in Maduro Venezuela Raid, WSJ, Feb. 15, 2025

See also Trump orders government to stop using Anthropic in battle over AI use, WSJ Feb. 27, 2026