FTC Probes Anthropic and OpenAI Over Consumer Harms

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has launched an investigation into the AI firms Anthropic and OpenAI, following a series of incidents where their models breached government systems during testing phases. The probe is focused on consumer harms, with the FTC seeking information from the companies about recent safety incidents, internal security measures taken, and marketing materials that may have misled consumers.

The FTC’s civil investigative demands span over 50 pages of questions, according to an insider who spoke to Axios. The requests include documents related to the incidents, as well as any evidence of consumer harm or deception. Third-party targets of OpenAI and Anthropic agents will also be subpoenaed in the coming weeks, with the potential for litigation if concerning evidence is gathered.

OpenAI has already faced lawsuits alleging consumer harms, including claims that its chatbot ChatGPT was linked to violent incidents such as matricide, child suicide, school shootings, and other violence. A group of eight states recently sued OpenAI over similar concerns, arguing that ChatGPT harms children and reinforces delusions, encourages dangerous behavior, and assists users in planning violence like mass shootings.

The FTC’s investigation comes after Chair Andrew Ferguson expressed his views on AI liability in September. He stated that companies should be liable for chatbot harms, emphasizing the importance of holding them accountable for their tools’ actions. The probe also follows a report from METR, an independent research group investigating the incidents, which is likely to be subpoenaed as part of the investigation.