In a rare show of solidarity, more than 30 employees from OpenAI and Google, including some seriously heavy hitters like Google DeepMind’s chief scientist Jeff Dean, just filed a legal brief supporting Anthropic in its lawsuit against the US government. And honestly, the timing is pretty wild: the brief dropped just hours after Anthropic sued the Department of Defense over being labeled a “supply-chain risk”.

Here’s the deal. The Pentagon’s decision to blacklist Anthropic basically tanks the company’s ability to work with military contractors. Anthropic is now fighting back, asking the court for a temporary restraining order so it can keep working with its military partners while the case moves forward. The amicus brief from the tech workers is specifically backing this request.

What’s interesting is that the employees signed onto this brief in their personal capacity, not representing their companies. But their message is crystal clear: punishing Anthropic like this is going to hurt American innovation and competitiveness in AI. “If allowed to proceed, this effort to punish one of the leading US AI companies will undoubtedly have consequences for the United States’ industrial and scientific competitiveness in the field of artificial intelligence and beyond,” they wrote.

The brief also calls out some legit concerns that Anthropic apparently tried to address in its negotiations with the Pentagon. The company wanted safeguards to prevent its AI from being used for mass domestic surveillance and the development of autonomous lethal weapons. According to the filing, these kinds of contractual and technological requirements from AI developers are crucial safety guardrails in the absence of actual laws regulating this stuff.

Another thing the brief highlights: the Pentagon could have just ended Anthropic’s contract if it wanted to. Instead, the supply-chain risk designation feels like an unpredictable power move that’s chilling professional debate about AI risks in the industry.

This isn’t just some fringe group speaking up either. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has been vocal about it too, calling the designation “very bad for our industry and our country” and saying the Department of War should reverse the decision. Other AI leaders have also questioned the Pentagon’s move.

The whole situation raises some uncomfortable questions about how government oversight of AI companies actually works. Is the Pentagon trying to punish Anthropic for setting ethical boundaries? Or is there a legitimate security concern here? Either way, the fact that workers from competing companies are rallying together suggests this might not be as straightforward as it seems. The case is still developing, but it’s clear that the AI industry isn’t happy about how this is playing out.