Article 275: The FTC Subpoenas OpenAI and Anthropic - With the FTC's Own 3(b) Powers in Question

The US Federal Trade Commission has served document demands on OpenAI, Anthropic and other AI developers, seeking records tied to recent safety incidents, Axios reported. The FTC's authority here comes from Section 6(b) of the FTC Act - a power to compel documents for study, with no allegation of wrongdoing required and no enforcement action implied. It is the same tool the agency used for its 6(b) study of social media platforms a decade ago.

Key Takeaway: A 6(b) study is not a charge, it is a mirror. The commission compels companies to hand over internal incident records in order to publish what it finds - which historically is how investigations begin: with a document request that produces an industry-wide portrait nobody, including the regulator, had before. The AI labs have now entered the phase where their own incident logs become public policy input.

Sources: Axios, Reuters, 15 October 2026