The commander of U.S. Central Command publicly confirmed on Wednesday that the military is using artificial intelligence tools to accelerate operations in Operation Epic Fury, the ongoing air campaign against Iran launched February 28.

In a video statement, Adm. Brad Cooper said AI systems are helping analysts "sift through vast amounts of data in seconds," enabling faster decisions against Iranian targets. "Advanced AI tools can turn processes that used to take hours and sometimes even days into seconds," Cooper said. He confirmed that humans retain final authority on all shoot decisions.

Palantir and Anthropic in the Loop

According to NBC News, the military is relying on Palantir's Maven Smart System—which integrates Anthropic's Claude AI technology—to help analysts process intelligence and identify targets. Claude's role is limited to sorting and summarizing data; it does not directly provide targeting recommendations. American forces have struck more than 5,500 targets inside Iran since the operation began.

Legal Dispute in the Background

The disclosure lands amid an active legal battle between Anthropic and the Pentagon. The Defense Department previously designated Anthropic as a supply chain risk following a dispute over terms of use for its technology. Anthropic has since filed suit against the Defense Department and other federal agencies over the designation.

Congress Pushes for Guardrails

Members of the House Armed Services Committee have responded with calls for oversight. Rep. Jill Tokuda called for "a full, impartial review to determine if AI has already harmed or jeopardized lives." Rep. Sara Jacobs warned that AI tools "aren't 100% reliable" and said strict guardrails are essential for battlefield use.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has made AI integration a central goal of the Pentagon's operations strategy.