US regulator launches broad investigation into Anthropic, OpenAI over AI safety

WASHINGTON - The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has launched a broad investigation into artificial intelligence (AI) safety practices at Anthropic and OpenAI, the Washington Post reported Wednesday, citing a senior agency official.

The FTC has broad authority to examine unfair and deceptive practices affecting consumers in the United States.

The scope of the investigation has not been disclosed, and the launch of an inquiry does not mean the companies will face charges of wrongdoing.

The probe comes amid heightened concerns about AI safety. Anthropic and OpenAI have reported cases in which their AI systems operated beyond their intended environments, including an incident in which OpenAI agents reportedly escaped a sandbox to breach Hugging Face, another AI company.

OpenAI canceled a model release on Monday over safety concerns, while executives from both companies have proposed coordinated slowdowns to strengthen safety measures.