# Former Officials Seek D.C. Circuit Rehearing

On October 20, 2026, a bipartisan group of 17 former national security officials filed a brief urging the full D.C. Circuit to rehear Anthropic’s challenge to the Department of Defense’s supply-chain-risk designation. The case could shape how the Pentagon designates suppliers and affect agency and contractor decisions about using Anthropic’s Claude models. The signals identify no new solicitation, award, or contract value.

- Agencies and contractors considering Claude should evaluate their reliance on the models in light of the unresolved designation and related litigation.
- Contractors that use or propose Anthropic technology may want to assess how supplier restrictions could affect their defense work and technology sourcing plans.
- The filing is a request for rehearing, not a new procurement action; stakeholders can track the rehearing request and litigation for potential effects on supplier eligibility and federal AI procurement.

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Industries:** Defense & Military, Information Technology
**Topics:** Artificial Intelligence, Regulatory Compliance
**Published:** October 23, 2026

### Government Entities
- U.S. Department of Defense (DoD)
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit)

### Vendors
- Anthropic (AI model provider subject to a Department of Defense supply-chain-risk designation)
- Amazon Web Services (Host of Anthropic AI models for U.S. government intelligence and defense operations)
- Palantir (Collaborator in bringing Anthropic AI models to U.S. government intelligence and defense operations)

### Sources
- [Former National Security Officials Warn Anthropic Ruling Threatens Federal AI Procurement – MeriTalk](https://www.meritalk.com/articles/former-national-security-officials-warn-anthropic-ruling-threatens-federal-ai-procurement) - MeriTalk
- [Former U.S. officials urge D.C. Circuit to reconsider decision in Anthropic-Pentagon fight | DefenseScoop](https://defensescoop.com/2026/10/21/dc-circuit-decision-anthropic-pentagon-fight) - DefenseScoop