Users in Houthi-held Yemen tried to develop advanced weapons with AI, Anthropic says

Anthropic revealed that users in northern Yemen, under the control of Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, attempted to utilize the AI model Claude to develop advanced missiles. However, they failed to create an operational device but conducted a failed test of a guided rocket, subsequently returning to Claude to inquire about the failure.

The company blocked these accounts and issued a report detailing their findings from December to August, revealing that the rebels pursued three weapon programs, including a hypersonic gliding missile and a warhead that employs mobile phone hardware for mid-course maneuvering. The users allegedly employed Claude Code, programmed by AI, rather than human software engineers.

Despite the Houthis' apparent efforts, weapons analyst Trevor Ball of Armament Research Services asserted that they lacked the production and technical capabilities to build such advanced weapons. The Houthis have been intensifying their attacks on Saudi oil facilities and tankers in the Red Sea, threatening global trade, while also expanding their influence along the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a critical alternative to the Strait of Hormuz.