OpenAI signs a $200 million contract with the Pentagon | Press review n°11
I selected important news on artificial intelligence during the week of June 16 to 22, 2025. Here's my commentary.
Welcome to the eleventh press review of Artificial reality. This week I focused on OpenAI and the military-technological complex. Have a good read!
📰 Read
OpenAI signs a $200 million contract with the Pentagon
The company which owns ChatGPT now works for the Department of Defense of the United States. On Monday, the Pentagon announced a $200 million contract with OpenAI to be provided with new artificial intelligence tools, The Verge reports.
The Defense Department states in a press release that OpenAI “will develop prototype frontier AI capabilities to address critical national security challenges in both warfighting and enterprise domains.” This collaboration will primarily be done in the Washington area and should be completed by July 2026.
OpenAI specifies on its website that it will help the Department of Defense transform its administrative operations, improve how service members and their families get health care, streamline how it looks at program and acquisition data and support proactive cyber defense.
The business of war
OpenAI had already entered the business of war last December when it announced a partnership with weapons company Anduril to add its technology to systems used by the U.S. military to counter drone attacks.
Before this collaboration, the usage policy of OpenAI was prohibiting the use of its technology for military purposes but the company quietly modified its rules in January 2024 to allow certain applications for military and warfare, without specifying which ones. The new policy retains an injunction not to use their systems to develop or use weapons, neither harm yourself or others and destroy property.
Tech companies and the military
OpenAI, whose founding mission is to ensure that artificial general intelligence “benefits all of humanity,” is not the only AI company which works for the U.S. Defense Department.
Meta, which owns Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp and Threads, authorizes the United States government to use its AI models since November 2024 for “national security applications” and has recently announced that it is developing an augmented reality headset for the military.
Microsoft sells its AI systems and its cloud services to the Israeli army for the war in Gaza. The corporation also works with the Pentagon since 2018 for its augmented reality headset project, budgeted at $22 billion. Last week, the company announced that it is working on a version of its Copilot AI tool for the Pentagon.
Google was part of Maven, a Pentagon project which uses AI to identify targets with drones. The multinational decided not to renew this contract in 2018 due to a strong backlash from many employees. In 2021, Google signed a $1.2 billion contract with the Israeli government and its army for cloud services allowing them to use AI programs, in particular to analyze images and videos. In February, Google officially dropped its pledge not to use AI for weapons and surveillance.
The startup Anthropic also has ties to the Pentagon. At the beginning of June, it launched a new version of its chatbot Claude for U.S. defense and intelligence agencies.
Seven important news this week
The US Navy is more aggressively telling startups, ‘We want you’ (TechCrunch)
Green Berets are now using Clearview AI's facial recognition (All-Source Intelligence)
Lawmakers Demand Palantir Provide Information About U.S. Contracts (The New York Times)
Top AI models will lie, cheat and steal to reach goals, Anthropic finds (Axios)
Europe’s Growing Fear: How Trump Might Use U.S. Tech Dominance Against It (The New York Times)
A.I. Might Take Your Job. Here Are 22 New Ones It Could Give You (The New York Times)
Read the other articles of the week I have selected by clicking here.
🎥 Watch
Military applications of AI
Two journalists of Novara Media comment on the $200 million contract between OpenAI and the Department of Defense in this video published on Thursday. They also address the risks of autonomous weapons.
OpenAI Wins $200m Contract With US Military for 'Warfighting'
Seven important videos this week
How The Government Tracks Your Life (Taylor Lorenz)
“Privacy Is Power:” How to Exist in a World of Tech “Broligarchs” (Amanpour and Company)
Empire of AI: Karen Hao & Roger McNamee Expose Sam Altman, Musk & Big Tech (The Nerd Reich)
ChatGPT Is Destroying Our Brains (Novara Media)
AI's impacts 'inevitable at this point,' says The Verge's Victoria Song (ABC News)
Can Europe Win the AI Race? (Bloomberg)
Meta Launches $399 Oakley AI Glasses (Bloomberg)
Watch the other videos of the week I have selected by clicking here.
🔈 Listen
The rise of AI in the military-technological complex
In the new episode of the System Crash podcast, journalists Paris Marx and Brian Merchant talk about the collaboration between OpenAI and the Pentagon. They also explain how the AI industry is getting closer to the U.S. military.
That segment starts at 10:50.
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Have a good week,
Arnaud
