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Anthropic’s Pentagon deal is a cautionary tale for startups chasing contracts | Equity Podcast

The Pentagon has officially designated Anthropic a supply-chain risk after the two failed to agree on how much control the military should have over its AI models, including its use in autonomous weapons and mass domestic surveillance. As Anthropic’s $200 million contract fell apart, the DoD turned to OpenAI instead, which accepted and then watched…

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The Pentagon has officially designated Anthropic a supply-chain risk after the two failed to agree on how much control the military should have over its AI models, including its use in autonomous weapons and mass domestic surveillance. As Anthropic’s $200 million contract fell apart, the DoD turned to OpenAI instead, which accepted and then watched ChatGPT uninstalls surge 295%. As the stakes keep rising, the question remains: how much unrestricted access should the military have to an AI model?

On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, hosts Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Sean O’Kane dig into what startups should think about when chasing federal contracts, especially when nobody seems to know what to do with AI in Washington, and more of the week’s headlines.

Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

00:29 Paramount acquires Warner Brothers: What do we call it now?

04:51 MyFitnessPal acquires teen-built Cal AI

10:56 Pinterest’s $1B investment: AI growth or shareholder appeasement?

16:04 Anduril’s massive raise despite product questions

20:35 Will startups pause on defense contracts after Anthropic’s Pentagon fight?

25:16 OpenAI vs. Anthropic: Contract terms on autonomous weapons

28:25 The SaaS-pocalypse

32:56 Upcoming events

33:35 Outro

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2 Comments

2 Comments

  1. @methodlab07

    March 7, 2026 at 8:18 am

    Tech needs to go back to “do no harm” and stand up against authoritarianism

    Reply

    • @DelenaMalan

      March 8, 2026 at 1:45 pm

      That was just a sales tactic. They were in it for the money from the start anyway. The tech industry is not going to save us.

      Reply

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CNET

Meet the Marty Supreme of Robots | What The Future

Sony’s Project Ace has created the first robot to beat an elite human table tennis player, with nine cameras analyzing spin and tracking the ball in real time. Read more about Project Ace on CNET.com Sony’s AI Robot Can Probably Beat You at Table Tennis 0:00 Intro to Sony’s Project Ace Robot 0:13 AI Defeats…

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May 17, 2026

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Sony’s Project Ace has created the first robot to beat an elite human table tennis player, with nine cameras analyzing spin and tracking the ball in real time.

Read more about Project Ace on CNET.com
Sony’s AI Robot Can Probably Beat You at Table Tennis

0:00 Intro to Sony’s Project Ace Robot
0:13 AI Defeats a Professional Player
0:25 Project ACE Tracking Technology
0:43 Countering Ball Spin & Speed
0:51 Real-Time Adaptability
1:10 Official Standards & Licensed Referees
1:31 The AI Advantage vs. Human Limitations
1:38 The Future of Table Tennis Robots

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Science & Technology

The Musk v. Altman case is in the jury’s hands. The trust verdict is still out. | Equity Podcast

The Musk v. Altman trial came to a close this week, and the final arguments kept circling back to one question: can we trust the people in charge of AI? All of this is playing out as SpaceX charges toward what could be one of the largest IPOs in American history, with a whole generation…

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May 15, 2026

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The Musk v. Altman trial came to a close this week, and the final arguments kept circling back to one question: can we trust the people in charge of AI? All of this is playing out as SpaceX charges toward what could be one of the largest IPOs in American history, with a whole generation of founders already spinning out of the Musk empire.

On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and Sean O’Kane break down the trial’s closing stretch and what the growing Elon Musk founder ecosystem looks like on the ground, and the other deals that caught our eye this week.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

00:16 Claude learns how to blackmail (Anthropic’s AI safety report)

03:20 Anduril’s $5B Series H

08:43 Mind Robotics and why investors can’t say no to RJ Scaringe

15:03 Vapi’s $50M Series B and the AI customer service moment

20:25 The Elon Musk founder machine: Tesla and SpaceX alumni

30:12 The startups stepping up to build data centers in space

32:50 The OpenAI trial wraps: Who trusts Sam Altman?

38:11 Outro

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CNET

First Look at Segway’s $5,299 Xaber 300 Electric Dirt Bike

Segway’s newest e-dirt bike, the Xaber 300, is now available in the U.S. and features a top speed of 60-mph, and a virtual clutch that gives you more control like you would on a gas powered dirt bike. Do you think the future of dirt bikes is electric? CNET Senior Video Producer Dillon Lopez is…

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Segway’s newest e-dirt bike, the Xaber 300, is now available in the U.S. and features a top speed of 60-mph, and a virtual clutch that gives you more control like you would on a gas powered dirt bike. Do you think the future of dirt bikes is electric? CNET Senior Video Producer Dillon Lopez is here to give you a first look at this $5,299 electric dirt bike. ⚡️🏍️ #segway #segwayxaber300 #electricdirtbike #edirtbike #dirtbike

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