FTC investigates OpenAI, Anthropic and others over product risks

On September 30, 2026, CNBC published a report saying that the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is investigating OpenAI, Anthropic and other AI companies over the risks their products may pose. That CNBC article, at https://www.cnbc.com/2026/09/30/ftc-ai-probe-openai-anthropic.html, is the earliest item available on the matter.

The story then surfaced on Hacker News on October 1, 2026, under the headline "FTC 调查 OpenAI、Anthropic 等公司的产品风险" (the FTC is investigating product risks at OpenAI, Anthropic and other companies). The Hacker News submission links to https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49921050 and has drawn 205 points and 157 comments.

That is the full extent of what the available material confirms. OpenAI and Anthropic are named as subjects; the FTC is the investigating body; the stated focus is the risk associated with the companies' products. Beyond that, the reports do not specify which products are under scrutiny, what kinds of risk are involved, or exactly when the investigation began. No statement from the FTC, OpenAI, Anthropic or any of the unnamed "other" AI companies is included, so those details remain unknown for now.