CBS says an FTC spokesperson confirmed demands to OpenAI and Anthropic

On 15 October 2026, CBS News reported that a spokesperson for the Federal Trade Commission confirmed the agency has subpoenaed Anthropic and OpenAI “to gather information about potential consumer protection violations.” CBS says Axios reported the development first, and that the agency declined further comment on the probe.

What Axios attributes to one person

Maria Curi’s Axios story, at a URL dated 15 October 2026, says that on Wednesday the FTC sent civil subpoenas seeking documents about safety incidents. The story then says the agency sent civil investigative demands. A person familiar told Axios that the commission sought documents from Anthropic and OpenAI in a probe focused on potential consumer protection violations. Axios says each demand is more than 50 pages long and asks for documents concerning security incidents and safeguarding practices, plus marketing materials and documents detailing company privacy policies. That person said investigative demands will be sent to third-party AI organizations later, and that the FTC plans to compel top AI executives to testify about their products.

Axios describes the demands as a way to gather evidence and investigate ahead of possible litigation. The story does not report a complaint, a consent order, or a finding that either company broke the law.

CBS uses both “subpoenas” and “civil investigative demands” for the Wednesday step. It attributes the later third-party demands to Axios, citing a person familiar. CBS also writes that the FTC could compel Anthropic and OpenAI to testify before Congress. Axios says the agency plans to compel top executives to testify, and that passage does not mention Congress. The testimony point here follows Axios.

What the FTC says a demand is

A 2018 FAQ from the Bureau of Consumer Protection says a civil investigative demand is “a kind of subpoena,” a document enforceable in court that seeks documents or other information related to an investigation. The FAQ says the FTC sends these demands to companies it thinks may have violated the law, and also to others who are not the subjects of an investigation. Asked whether receiving one means the FTC is suing, the FAQ answers “No.” It calls the demand the first step in an investigation. Staff sometimes close the matter after reviewing the documents. Sometimes they later negotiate, and sometimes the Commission files a lawsuit.

The FTC’s overview of its authority says the Bureau of Consumer Protection uses civil investigative demands to investigate possible “unfair or deceptive acts or practices.” On that page, a complaint is a later step, when the Commission has “reason to believe” a violation occurred. Nothing opened here is that complaint.

Comment, and the missing release

A Reuters item on Investing.com, dated 15 October 2026, says Axios reported the subpoenas, citing a person familiar. It says the FTC, OpenAI, and Anthropic did not immediately respond to Reuters’s requests for comment. The Globe and Mail carried the same Reuters text. That copy says Axios reported on Wednesday. Axios’s URL is dated 15 October, and the story places the sending on Wednesday.

A search of ftc.gov did not surface an October 2026 press release announcing these demands. The spokesperson line is CBS’s report of what a spokesperson told CBS. The pages opened here do not include an FTC announcement.

Anthropic’s news index, opened on 15 October, contained no item mentioning the FTC. OpenAI’s news page did not load. Beyond Reuters’s report that the companies had not immediately replied, no company statement was found.

The 30 September account

On 30 September, Axios reported that an FTC spokesperson told Axios the agency was investigating OpenAI, Anthropic, and other AI companies over potential safety risks. That story said the New York Post first reported that Chair Andrew Ferguson was preparing demands that would compel executives to produce documents and testify. The Post was not opened for this account. Axios said then that OpenAI and Anthropic had not responded to a request for comment.

CBS calls the Wednesday demands a development two weeks after the FTC said it was investigating. The 30 September Axios story is the earlier spokesperson account opened here.

Other proceedings

State attorneys general announced their own lawsuits against OpenAI on 14 October. Those are separate filings, set out in Eight states sued OpenAI. Information requests under the EU AI Act are a different process, covered in the Commission’s requests to model providers.