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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

iPhone 18 Pro Max Case Try-On

Dress to Impress but make it iPhone 18 Pro Max ✨ Bridget Carey tries on a few of Apple’s official cases (plus some extras.) #unboxing #onemorething #iphone18promax #iphonecase #apple Camera: Tara Brown Video Editor: Faith Chihil Add CNET as a trusted news source Never miss a deal again! See CNET’s browser extension 👉 Check out…

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September 21, 2026

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Dress to Impress but make it iPhone 18 Pro Max ✨

Bridget Carey tries on a few of Apple’s official cases (plus some extras.) #unboxing #onemorething #iphone18promax #iphonecase #apple

Camera: Tara Brown
Video Editor: Faith Chihil

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The Infodemic — and the Scientists Fighting Against It | Jessica Malaty Rivera | TED

Epidemiologist and science communicator Jessica Malaty Rivera believes we’re navigating a serious outbreak: health misinformation. She explores why the public’s trust in science is wavering — and the importance of winning it back. In this conversation with TED’s Whitney Pennington Rodgers, Rivera maps out what it takes to become a trusted messenger in an era…

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September 21, 2026

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Epidemiologist and science communicator Jessica Malaty Rivera believes we’re navigating a serious outbreak: health misinformation. She explores why the public’s trust in science is wavering — and the importance of winning it back. In this conversation with TED’s Whitney Pennington Rodgers, Rivera maps out what it takes to become a trusted messenger in an era when expertise itself is up for debate. (Recorded at TEDNext 2025 on November 9, 2025)

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The TED Talks channel features the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world’s leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes (or less) — plus originals, podcasts and exclusive content. Look for videos on Technology, Entertainment and Design as well as science, business, global issues, the arts and more. Visit for our entire library, transcripts, translations and personalized recommendations.

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CNET

Googlebooks Might Just Be the Future of AI Laptops

With options from Acer, Asus, Dell, HP and Lenovo, the first batch of Googlebooks not only delivers on Google’s promise of premium quality and features, but the user experience doesn’t disappoint either. Read more about Googlebooks on CNET.com Lenovo Shares Images of New Googlebook and 2-in-1 Tablet Timecode Chapters: 0:00 GOOGLEBOOKS! 0:15 Brands Making Googlebook…

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With options from Acer, Asus, Dell, HP and Lenovo, the first batch of Googlebooks not only delivers on Google’s promise of premium quality and features, but the user experience doesn’t disappoint either.

Read more about Googlebooks on CNET.com
Lenovo Shares Images of New Googlebook and 2-in-1 Tablet

Timecode Chapters:
0:00 GOOGLEBOOKS!
0:15 Brands Making Googlebook Models
0:38 Premium Feel
1:00 Cost and Release Dates
1:13 Android Ecosystem Demo
1:19 Continue On
2:03 Cast My App
2:44 Magic Pointer
3:22 Create My Widget
4:10 Agentic Coding
4:51 Chromebook vs Googlebook
5:40 Let Us Know What You Think

Video Credits:
Host: Josh Goldman
Scripted by: Josh Goldman
Producer: Numi Prasarn
Camera: Numi Prasarn
Video Editor: Numi Prasarn
Thumbnail Designer: Zooey Liao

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#google #googlebooks #aicomputing #aipc #android #androidos

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