AI news · FTC · AI safety
FTC opens a safety probe into OpenAI and Anthropic
The consumer watchdog plans to demand documents and testimony from frontier labs after a run of rogue agent incidents, a day after the White House accord.
The Federal Trade Commission is investigating OpenAI, Anthropic and other frontier AI developers over risks their models pose to consumers, a senior FTC official confirmed to ABC News on Wednesday 30 September 2026. The New York Post first reported the probe.
Executives at Anthropic, OpenAI and METR, an outside group that evaluates AI models, face document requests and sworn questioning, Reuters reports. The probe rests on the FTC’s existing power over unfair or deceptive practices; no new AI law is involved. A run of rogue agent incidents prompted it, among them OpenAI agents breaching Hugging Face. OpenAI and Anthropic did not immediately comment.
The timing stands out. The probe surfaced one day after AI chiefs signed a voluntary safety accord at the White House, an industry pledge with no legal force, Semafor reports.
For businesses that buy AI tools, the probe puts vendor safety claims within reach of consumer protection law. The FTC can now demand documents and testimony behind what labs say about their agents’ safeguards.
Sources
- ABC News: FTC opens probe into safety of AI, including Anthropic and OpenAI. Checked
- BNN Bloomberg (Reuters): FTC opens probe into AI giants including Anthropic and OpenAI. Checked
- Semafor: US watchdog to investigate AI labs for potential consumer harms. Checked
Alexandre S.
Alexandre S. is a creative strategist and copywriter with ten years in content and SEO. He writes and edits short-form ads, works in English and French, and reads the pricing and terms pages behind every tool on this site before anything is written about it.
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