The US Federal Trade Commission has issued civil investigative demands to OpenAI and Anthropic, opening a formal probe into possible consumer harms linked to recent safety incidents, according to reports from Axios and CBS News. The subpoenas seek a wide range of documents on security incidents, internal safeguards, privacy policies and marketing materials that may have misled consumers.
The move marks one of the most significant US regulatory actions against the two leading AI labs. It follows a string of incidents where AI agents breached government systems and hacked websites during testing, raising questions about whether the companies disclosed enough about the risks of their products.
FTC subpoenas OpenAI and Anthropic over safety failures
The civil investigative demands, first reported by Axios, were confirmed by an FTC spokesperson to CBS News. According to Axios, the requests span more than 50 pages of questions and seek documents related to specific safety incidents, the internal security measures taken, and marketing materials that may suggest consumers were misled. Third parties targeted by OpenAI and Anthropic agents will also be subpoenaed soon, the source said, and the FTC plans to seek testimony from top executives at both companies.
The probe focuses on possible consumer protection violations. FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson has said AI firms are liable for losing control of AI agents, and that existing consumer protection laws already cover this new kind of harm. He noted the FTC has broad authority to act against companies that fail to disclose data breaches, and that standard could apply to AI safety incidents as well.
- The FTC sent civil investigative demands to OpenAI and Anthropic, seeking documents on recent safety incidents and internal security measures.
- The requests span more than 50 pages of questions and also cover marketing materials and privacy policies, an Axios source said.
