According to internal sources, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has launched an antitrust investigation into OpenAI. The investigation focused on OpenAI's AI chatbot, ChatGPT, questioning whether it violated consumer protection laws and the threat it could pose to consumers' reputation and private data.
OpenAI, an innovative company sponsored by global tech giant Microsoft, is currently facing its first formal investigation into its innovative technology. This technology has the potential to change every aspect of our lives, but it can also bring unknown problems, which has attracted the attention of regulators. FTC Chairman Lina Khan has said in Congress that law enforcement agencies need to be vigilant against innovative tools such as artificial intelligence.
The investigation is a major regulatory action for OpenAI. OpenAI is a leader in generative AI technology, and its ChatGPT application has inspired companies across industries to develop their own generative AI bots. ChatGPT is trained on big data and language models, so it can answer questions in a human-like way.
Divyansh Kaushik, deputy director of emerging technologies and national security at the Federation of American Scientists, believes the survey could have implications for OpenAI and even the entire field of AI innovation. He said this is a sign that regulators are actively ensuring that AI companies operate in an ethical and responsible manner.
Since ChatGPT was adopted by consumers, there has been a growing call for its regulation. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, a staunch proponent of regulation, believes the U.S. Congress should set strict safety standards for advanced AI systems. He has said that if there is a problem with the technology, the consequences can be very serious. Altman has recently visited more than 20 countries in an attempt to show regulators that OpenAI is willing to accept stricter regulation.
In March, a prominent tech ethics body launched a lawsuit asking the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to stop further commercial deployment of ChatGPT's technology. The lawsuit was launched by Marc Rotenberg of the Center for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Policy, a longtime advocate for the right to privacy. They argue that the FTC should investigate and ensure that the necessary protections are in place to protect the interests of consumers, businesses and the commercial market.
Khan said the FTC, the federal agency responsible for enforcing antitrust and consumer protection laws, is closely monitoring the competitive landscape in this area to ensure that leading companies do not use their strengths in key inputs such as data to discriminate against competitors. She also said the agency is monitoring how scammers use AI tools and will enforce these frauds, including against companies that facilitate scammers.
The FTC reportedly sent a 20-page letter to OpenAI this week asking the company to detail all complaints it received about "false, misleading, derogatory or harmful" statements about its products being made to people. The FTC is investigating whether the company has done "reputational damage" to consumers unfairly or fraudulently.
The FTC also asked OpenAI to provide a record of a security incident published in March. At the time, there was a vulnerability in the company's system that allowed some users to see payment-related information, as well as some chat history of other users.
At Thursday's U.S. House Judiciary Committee hearing, Khan faced questioning from some members of Congress. Some Republican lawmakers criticized her excessive compliance with ethics law and aggressive antitrust enforcement, calling her a "bully" and calling her leadership "a disaster."