OpenAI, Anthropic And Google DeepMind Discuss AI Safety As Industry Faces Pressure To Slow Frontier Development: Report - Yahoo Finance

OpenAI, Anthropic And Google DeepMind Discuss AI Safety As Industry Faces Pressure To Slow Frontier Development: Report

- OpenAI is holding safety discussions with Anthropic and Alphabet's Google DeepMind, according to Bloomberg, citing OpenAI policy chief Chris Lehane.

- The talks come days after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called on the industry to "pace the frontier," arguing that AI development should slow enough for safety measures and independent evaluations to keep up.

- Lehane said OpenAI does not believe an antitrust waiver is necessary for its current safety discussions with Anthropic and Google DeepMind.

OpenAI is reportedly discussing AI safety with rivals Anthropic and Alphabet's Google DeepMind (GOOG, GOOGL) as concerns over the risks of increasingly capable AI systems intensify.

According to a Bloomberg report, OpenAI global policy chief Chris Lehane said on Tuesday that the three companies have been in discussions for several weeks about coordinating on AI safety. Lehane said OpenAI does not believe the companies need an antitrust waiver to coordinate on safety efforts.

Lehane said OpenAI does not believe the companies need an antitrust waiver to work together on safety issues. The discussions appear to focus on cooperation on AI safety rather than a broader agreement to slow or halt model development, Bloomberg reported.

"It's better to try to work together to prioritize safety," Lehane said at a briefing in Washington, the report added.

AI Labs Face Growing Pressure To Slow Development

The discussions come as leading AI companies face growing scrutiny over whether the race to build more capable models is outpacing safety measures.

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently called on the industry to "pace the frontier," arguing that AI development should be slowed enough to give safety measures time to catch up. He has also proposed giving independent evaluators permanent, employee-level access to frontier AI labs to assess their safety practices.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has backed Amodei's proposal for independent evaluators, adding to signs of growing support among major AI labs for more coordinated safety measures.

OpenAI Backs Bipartisan AI Risk Legislation

The safety discussions come alongside OpenAI's engagement with U.S. lawmakers over potential AI risks.

Bloomberg reported that Lehane was in Washington meeting with lawmakers and said OpenAI would support bipartisan legislation aimed at mitigating catastrophic AI risks. Lehane said the company supports a federal AI governance framework proposed by Republican Representative Jay Obernolte and Democratic Representative Lori Trahan.