# OpenAI signs $200M defense contract with Department of War in Feb 2026

- slug: openai-signs-200m-defense-contract-with-department-of-war-in-feb-2026
- date: 2026-04-05
- category: Artificial Intelligence

OpenAI signed a $200M Pentagon deal hours after Anthropic got banned. The wiring was not accidental: 14 months earlier, OpenAI began its pivot by removing a military ban and hiring ex-NSA director Gen. Paul Nakasone to its board.

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