Yemen's Houthi rebels completed a rapid advance along the country's western coast last week, seizing the port city of Mocha and surrounding Red Sea islands to tighten control over the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

The territorial gains position the group to threaten global shipping lanes at the southern entrance to the Red Sea. Videos posted by the Houthis since early September show drones dropping munitions on vehicles and precise strikes on targets, along with captured armored vehicles and jamming equipment from opposing forces.

A report released by Anthropic on September 11 revealed that a cell of users in Houthi-controlled northern Yemen attempted to use the company's Claude AI models to develop guidance, navigation, and control software for multiple weapons programs. The efforts included a guided rocket using commercial phone-grade components, a multistage ballistic missile with a target range exceeding 2,000 kilometers, and variants featuring hypersonic glide vehicles.

Anthropic blocked the accounts after detecting the activity, which spanned from December 2025 to August 2026. The users conducted a test firing of a guided rocket that failed, then returned to the chatbot to analyze the results. The company stated it found no evidence the group fielded an operational weapon.

Conflict Armament Research, which visited Yemen this month, documented Houthi experimentation with loitering munitions, anti-tank systems, and components that could enable loitering torpedoes for maritime attacks. The group continues to receive Iranian support but shows increasing self-reliance through its own research, including hydrogen-powered unmanned systems.

The combination of recent battlefield successes and AI-assisted weapons development underscores the Houthis' growing capabilities as an Iran-backed force operating with reduced dependence on external suppliers for core technologies. The developments raise concerns about the spread of advanced guidance systems to non-state actors in conflict zones.