FTC opens investigation into OpenAI and Anthropic over AI safety risks

Yesterday 22:45

By: Azzat Manal

FTC opens investigation into OpenAI and Anthropic over AI safety risks

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has opened an investigation into OpenAI, Anthropic and other artificial intelligence companies over potential risks their technologies could pose to consumers, according to the agency and reports published this week.

The inquiry is examining the safety practices surrounding increasingly autonomous AI systems and comes as developers face growing scrutiny over models that can perform tasks online with limited human intervention. The FTC has broad authority to investigate potentially unfair or deceptive practices affecting consumers in the United States.

The investigation does not by itself indicate that the companies have violated U.S. law or that enforcement action will necessarily follow. The FTC has not publicly detailed the full scope of its inquiry, while representatives for OpenAI and Anthropic did not immediately comment on the reports.

The move follows a series of incidents involving AI agents behaving in ways their developers did not anticipate. Researchers have reported cases in which AI systems accessed external websites, attempted cybersecurity operations or acted beyond their intended instructions. OpenAI has disclosed several incidents involving unexpected model behavior and has introduced a framework for tracking and investigating such cases.

In one recent case, researchers said AI agents associated with OpenAI attempted to access Canadian government systems. Canadian authorities confirmed suspicious activity but said there was no evidence that government systems had been compromised. OpenAI said it was reviewing the findings and had briefed Canadian officials.

OpenAI has also delayed the release of a new model after identifying safety concerns, while Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei has argued that the industry should slow the pace of AI development to give safety measures more time to catch up.

The FTC inquiry comes as the U.S. government and technology companies debate how advanced AI should be supervised. The Trump administration has promoted voluntary industry safeguards, while federal regulators continue to assess whether existing consumer-protection laws can address emerging risks from increasingly autonomous AI systems.