The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has launched an investigation into OpenAI, the San Francisco-based business that built the well-known AI chatbot, ChatGPT. The Washington Post stated on July 13, 2023, that this review is to examine if OpenAI has violated regulations designed to keep users secure, potentially jeopardising their personal reputations and data.
The FTC has filed a 20-page demand for data to OpenAI in order to learn more about how the business tackles any problems with their AI algorithms. This federal agency is looking into whether OpenAI has been unfair or misleading, causing harm to people’s reputations.
The FTC is looking into a security problem that OpenAI notified in March 2023. A fault in OpenAI’s systems permitted certain users to read payment-related information as well as data from other users’ chat history. The FTC is investigating whether OpenAI’s data security practises in this event violated consumer protection laws.
The FTC is also interested in any research, testing, or surveys undertaken by OpenAI to determine how well customers comprehend the “accuracy or reliability of outputs” created by its AI capabilities. Furthermore, the FTC has requested information on how OpenAI licences its models to other companies.
This study follows earlier concerns voiced concerning OpenAI’s practises. According to The Verge, the Centre for AI and Digital Policy (CAIDP) urged the FTC to investigate OpenAI in March 2023 for alleged violations of consumer protection standards, saying that the development of AI text creation tools has been “biassed, deceptive, and a risk to public safety.”
The CAIDP has identified possible concerns from OpenAI’s GPT-4 generative text model, such as the development of malicious code, highly targeted propaganda, and the possibility for biassed training data to result in discriminatory race and gender preferences in sectors such as hiring.
The FTC’s inquiry into OpenAI is a significant step forward in the agency’s continuous interest in regulating artificial intelligence capabilities. It has already cautioned that biassed AI systems may result in regulatory action. The FTC’s probe of OpenAI, one of the key participants in the field of generative AI, is a significant step forward in the agency’s efforts.