Anthropic CFO sees billions of dollars in sales at risk due to Pentagon blacklisting

March 9 (Reuters) - Anthropic's finance chief Krishna Rao has said that the U.S. government's blacklisting could lead to a reduction in the artificial intelligence lab's 2026 revenue by multiple billions of dollars across its entire business.

The company filed a lawsuit on Monday to block the Pentagon from placing it on a national security blacklist, escalating its high-stakes battle with the U.S. military over usage restrictions on its technology.

Rao said in a filing to the federal court that if the government's actions are allowed to stand, the impact to Anthropic would be "almost impossible to reverse".

• "Across Anthropic’s entire business, and adjusting for how likely any given customer is to take a maximal reading, the government’s actions could reduce Anthropic's 2026 revenue by multiple billions of dollars."

• Anthropic projects that hundreds of millions of dollars in 2026 revenue may be at risk related solely to work carried out for the Department of War.

• Anthropic could lose 50% to 100% in revenue from defense contractors and others with dependence on the Department of War.

• The actions could undermine investors' confidence in Anthropic and will increase Anthropic's costs to raise the funds it needs to operate.