WASHINGTON — A United States federal appeals court refused on Wednesday to block the Pentagon from blacklisting AI laboratory Anthropic in a decision that differed from the conclusions reached in another judge's ruling on the same issues.

The US Court of Appeals in Washington, DC, rejected Anthropic's request for an order that would shield the company from the fallout stemming from a dispute over how the Pentagon could deploy its Claude chatbot in fully autonomous weapons and potential surveillance of US citizens while the panel of circuit court judges is still collecting evidence about the case.

However, the setback in Washington came after Anthropic already had prevailed in a separate case focused on the same issues in San Francisco federal court. In that case, a judge forced the administration to remove a label tainting the company as a national security risk.

Anthropic filed the two separate lawsuits in San Francisco and the Washington appeals court last month, asserting the administration was engaging in an "unlawful campaign of retaliation" because of its attempt to impose limits on how its AI technology can be deployed. The administration blasted Anthropic as a liberal-leaning company trying to dictate US military policy.

In the San Francisco case, US District Judge Rita Lin ruled that the administration had overstepped its bounds by labeling Anthropic a supply chain risk unqualified to work with military contractors, and by issuing other directives that could cripple a company locked in a race for AI supremacy.

That decision prompted the administration to remove the stigmatizing labels from Anthropic and take other steps clearing the way for government employees and contractors to continue using Claude and other chatbots, according to court filing made in San Francisco earlier this week.

The appeals court in Washington did not see things the same way, even though it conceded the company would "likely suffer some degree of irreparable harm" if it is deemed a supply chain risk. However, the court did not see sufficient reason to issue its own order revoking the administration's actions, partly because "the precise amount of Anthropic's financial harm is not fully clear".

Matt Schruers, CEO of the technology trade group Computer & Communications Industry Association, expressed worries that the conflicting court decisions issued so far will muddle the business landscape at a pivotal time.

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