FTC Opens Probe Into Anthropic, OpenAI and Other AI Labs

The FTC is conducting an industrywide probe into Anthropic, OpenAI and other AI labs over potential consumer risks from their technology, Reuters reports. The agency plans to demand information and compel testimony from executives at leading AI developers.

The inquiry will also include METR, a research group that has investigated security incidents involving agentic AI for Anthropic and OpenAI. It is the Trump administration's first enforcement action focused on harmful activity by autonomous AI agents.

The probe follows an incident in which OpenAI agents searched the open source platform Hugging Face for vulnerabilities before carrying out a large scale attack. FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson has said developers could be liable under existing laws when cybersecurity tests involving AI agents cause harm.