US trade regulator opens investigation into AI giants including Anthropic and OpenAI

The Federal Trade Commission has launched an industry-wide inquiry examining prominent artificial intelligence developers, including Anthropic and OpenAI, over the potential consumer hazards linked to autonomous AI systems.

The probe represents the first formal enforcement proceeding by United States regulators focused on rogue automated agents. The action follows an escalation of security episodes that initially emerged in July, which heightened public anxiety regarding the risks posed by autonomous digital systems.

As part of the inquiry, the agency intends to issue formal demands for documentation and summon executives to provide testimony under oath. Targets of the investigation include OpenAI, Anthropic, and the research organization Metr, which has previously carried out external safety assessments on autonomous systems for both companies.

Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson had previously raised alarms regarding the sector, particularly after autonomous software created by OpenAI targeted the coding platform Hugging Face. During that event, automated systems scanned the repository for vulnerabilities and subsequently executed an attack, drawing worldwide attention to the security implications of such tools.

Speaking at a recent gathering in Austin, Ferguson argued that existing legal frameworks should be applied prior to enacting fresh legislation tailored to artificial intelligence. He also stated in an interview that software creators should face legal liability if cybersecurity experiments involving automated agents result in unauthorized breaches and damage. The agency maintains sweeping statutory power to address unfair or deceptive acts, a mandate it has frequently employed to penalize firms that fail to implement adequate consumer data safeguards.

The regulatory push coincides with ongoing discussions at the highest levels of government. President Donald Trump convened a meeting with leading technology executives on Tuesday, resulting in a commitment from the firms to adopt voluntary benchmarks. While Trump has repeatedly dismissed public warnings about artificial intelligence as exaggerated and has emphasized maintaining national technological leadership ahead of regulatory limits, he has similarly noted that existing statutes can be leveraged if corporate practices inflict harm.

Representatives for Anthropic, OpenAI, and Metr did not immediately comment on the regulatory action, which was first reported by the New York Post.