Anthropic says Yemen fighters used AI to seek guided weapons

The U.S. company Anthropic reported on September 10, 2026, that a group of fighters in Yemen sought to use their Claude chatbot to develop guided weapons. In a report discussing its efforts to prevent illicit uses of Claude in various nations, Anthropic identified a threat actor cell operating from northern Yemen. This group was involved in three weapons development initiatives: a guided rocket with guidance from a low-cost flight computer, a ballistic missile with a range goal of over 2,000 kilometers, and a multi-variant missile, including a hypersonic glide vehicle variant.

While Anthropic did not confirm whether the actors succeeded in fielding operational weapons, it noted that the group tested-fired a guided rocket, which ultimately failed. The company promptly banned the offending accounts after detecting the illegal activity. The Houthis, an Iran-backed militant group controlling much of northern Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, have been on an aggressive offensive across the country, aiming to seize strategic locations such as the Bab al-Mandab strait, a critical route connecting Europe to Asia.