Group in Yemen used Anthropic AI to try to develop weapons

A group in Yemen used Claude, Anthropic's artificial intelligence (AI), to try to develop guided weapons, the American company announced on Thursday (10), as Houthi rebels take over the country's Red Sea coast.

Anthropic did not identify the group, but said it is based in northern Yemen, a region controlled by the Houthis, Iranian-backed rebels who dominate part of the territory, including the capital, Sanaa.

Anthropic has not revealed the group's identity, but it is likely to be the pro-Iran insurgents who control much of northern Yemen, including the capital Sana'a.

"We identified a malicious cell based in northern Yemen that was conducting three weapons development programs," the company said in a report on illegal operations it managed to disrupt in different countries.

According to Anthropic, the projects included a guided rocket with a smartphone-like flight calculator and automatic guidance system, a ballistic missile with a range exceeding 2,000 km, and a projectile equipped with a "hypersonic glider."

The group used Claude to replace a team of engineers specialized in creating guidance, navigation and weapons control software. Anthropic said it found no evidence that the cell had managed to get an operational weapon working. According to the company, there was an attempt to launch a guided rocket, but the test failed.