Founder Summit 2026 in Boston: Don’t miss ticket savings of up to $300. Register Now.
Save up to $680 on your Disrupt 2026 pass. Ends 11:59 p.m. PT tonight. REGISTER NOW .
TechCrunch Desktop Logo TechCrunch Mobile Logo Latest Startups Venture Apple Security AI Apps Events Podcasts Newsletters Search Submit Site Search Toggle Mega Menu Toggle Topics Latest
No one has a good plan for how AI companies should work with the government Russell Brandom 2:59 PM PST · March 2, 2026 As Sam Altman discovered Saturday night, it’s a fraught time to do work for the U.S. government. Around 7 p.m., the OpenAI CEO announced he would be fielding questions publicly on X, as a way of demystifying his company’s decision to pick up the Pentagon contract that Anthropic had just walked away from.
Most of the questions boiled down to OpenAI’s willingness to participate in mass surveillance and automated killing — the exact activities Anthropic had ruled out in its negotiations with the Pentagon. Altman typically punted to the public sector, saying it wasn’t his role to set national policy.
“I very deeply believe in the democratic process,” he wrote in one response, “and that our elected leaders have the power, and that we all have to uphold the constitution.”
An hour later, he confessed surprise that so many people seemed to disagree. “There is more open debate than I thought there would be,” Altman said, “about whether we should prefer a democratically elected government or unelected private companies to have more power. I guess this is something people disagree on.”
It’s a telling moment for both OpenAI and the tech industry at large. In his Q&A, Altman employed a stance that’s standard in the defense industry, where military leaders and industry partners are expected to defer to civilian leadership.
But what’s more telling is that, as OpenAI transitions from a wildly successful consumer startup into a piece of national security infrastructure, the company appears unequipped to manage its new responsibilities.
Altman’s public town hall came at a heightened time for his company. The Pentagon had just blacklisted OpenAI rival Anthropic for insisting on contractual limitations for surveillance and automated weaponry. Hours later, OpenAI announced it had won the same contract Anthropic had given up. Altman portrayed the deal as a quick way to deescalate the conflict — and it was surely a lucrative one. But he seemed unprepared for how much blowback it generated from both the company’s users and its employees.
Techcrunch event Disrupt 2026: The tech ecosystem, all in one room Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register now to save up to $400. Save up to $300 or 30% to TechCrunch Founder Summit 1,000+ founders and investors come together at TechCrunch Founder Summit 2026 for a full day focused on growth, execution, and real-world scaling. Learn from founders and investors who have shaped the industry. Connect with peers navigating similar growth stages. Walk away with tactics you can apply immediately Offer ends March 13. San Francisco, CA | October 13-15, 2026 REGISTER NOW OpenAI has been engaging with the U.S. government for years — but not like this. When Altman was making his case to the Congressional committees in 2023 , for instance, he was still mostly following the social media playbook. He was bombastic about the company’s world-changing potential while acknowledging the risks and enthusiastically engaging with lawmakers — a perfect combination for stirring up investors while heading off regulation.
Less than three years later, that approach is no longer tenable. AI is so obviously powerful and the capital needs are so intense that it’s impossible to avoid a more serious engagement with the government. The surprise is how unprepared both sides seem to be for it.
The biggest immediate conflict is Anthropic itself, and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s stated plan Friday to designate the lab as a supply-chain risk. That threat looms over the whole conversation like an unfired gun. As former Trump official Dean Ball wrote over the weekend , the designation would cut Anthropic off from hardware and hosting partners, effectively destroying the company. It would be an unprecedented move against an American company, and while it might ultimately be reversed in court , it will cause damage in the interim and send shockwaves through the industry.
As Ball describes the process, Anthropic was carrying out an existing contract under terms that had been established years earlier — only to have the administration insist on changing the terms. It’s far beyond anything that would fly between private companies and sends a chilling message to other vendors.
“Even if Secretary Hegseth backs down and narrows his extremely broad threat against Anthropic, great damage has been done,” Ball wrote. “Most corporations, political actors, and others will have to operate under the assumption that the logic of the tribe will now reign.”
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
-- --
PLEASE LIKE IF YOU FOUND THIS HELPFUL TO SUPPORT OUR FORUM.
