FTC confirms a consumer-protection probe into OpenAI, Anthropic and METR

TL;DR

• On 30 September a senior FTC official confirmed to Reuters an industry-wide probe into Anthropic, OpenAI and other AI labs over potential dangers to consumers. The FTC includes METR, a nonprofit AI research group in Berkeley, California.
• The FTC plans to issue formal demands for information and compel testimony from executives; The Next Web and The Decoder say those civil investigative demands are expected within weeks.
• It became public a day after Anthropic, OpenAI and Google's leaders signed a voluntary safety accord at the White House. The companies did not immediately respond to Reuters.