Users Ghost ChatGPT for Claude as OpenAI Strikes Deal with Pentagon

The way some users see it, ChatGPT picked the Pentagon over the people. Now it’s paying for that choice. 

OpenAI said Friday it made a deal with the US military, while Anthropic lost its own contract after refusing to renegotiate terms to allow the defense department greater access. Afterward, users deleted ChatGPT and downloaded Claude. 

Anthropic’s Claude became the Apple App Store’s top free app over the weekend, ranking one spot above OpenAI’s ChatGPT, and held the spot at least through yesterday. An Instagram account called “QuitGPT” rapidly gained nearly 80,000 followers, and Reddit’s r/ChatGPT forum racked up “It’s so over” posts from boycotting users.

AI Goes to War

Tension between Anthropic and the White House has been building for weeks. Claude is the only AI model operating in the military’s classified systems, but that’s changing after the Pentagon blacklisted the company when it wouldn’t grant system access in ways that could enable its use in developing lethal autonomous weapons and mass surveillance technology. The dispute came to a boil on Friday when President Trump called Anthropic a “Radical Left” company and tore up its $200 million defense contract.

OpenAI lost no time letting the White House know it was waiting in the wings:

• While CEO Sam Altman posted on X that OpenAI’s agreement respects the company’s restrictions on mass surveillance and weapons systems, the Internet wasn’t buying it. The agreement reportedly allows “all lawful use” of OpenAI’s technology, and OpenAI said its handling of personal info complies with the Fourth Amendment and other applicable laws. Those have in the past, as The Verge’s Hayden Field pointed out, allowed for domestic surveillance. 
• In an “Ask Me Anything” post on X this weekend, Altman said the deal was rushed and “the optics don’t look good.” But OpenAI maintained that it wasn’t smudging its red lines, saying it’ll give employees security clearance to keep tabs on how its systems are used. 

Playing Defense: President Trump wants to spend $1.5 trillion on defense in 2027, and many AI companies want a piece of that. Google and xAI have AI contracts with the Pentagon, too, while Meta’s linked up with contractors like Lockheed Martin. Anthropic, meanwhile, has worked with Palantir. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei also said that although AI shouldn’t be used to develop autonomous weapons today, it could be critical in the future.