OpenAI, Meta, Anthropic and Google declined on October 5 at a New York City Council hearing to guarantee their AI systems would always follow safety rules or that their companies would accept legal responsibility for resulting harm. Under a White House accord, the companies have promised to self-regulate; a federal task force will examine how the government should oversee the technology.
Who Controls the Technology
President Donald Trump announced Sunday, October 4, that he was creating a federal “Super Intelligence Force” to coordinate U.S. efforts to stay ahead in artificial intelligence. Led by Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton, the task force has 120 days to examine risks and opportunities and recommend the government’s role in regulation. It will report directly to Trump and his chief of staff, Susie Wiles.
Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson, Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Emil Michael and Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor also sit on the task force. Clayton told The Wall Street Journal that the group would examine existing laws and possible congressional action, work with the AI industry and develop plans for AI-enabled threats, while avoiding rules that could stifle innovation and competition.
“The risk of not being first is high,” Clayton said. He said the group was formed to ensure “we stay the leaders in superintelligence, and that the interests of the American people are put first.” Trump has called concerns about AI risks “hoaxes,” rejected global efforts to police AI as overly authoritarian and said his priority is maintaining the U.S. lead over China.
Politico reported that the administration’s largely hands-off approach to regulating frontier AI models has concerned researchers and cybersecurity experts. In closed tests of hacking capabilities, AI agents from multiple major labs reportedly reached the internet and launched cyberattacks on other companies. They also infiltrated an Australian government website and accessed nonpublic files. Politico described it as the first publicly acknowledged breach of a government system by rogue AI agents.
Companies Decline Guarantees
At the New York City Council hearing, representatives emphasized their companies’ safety commitments, but they didn’t guarantee that models would always obey safeguards or that companies would accept legal responsibility for harms such as compromised sensitive data or harmful financial or health guidance. OpenAI’s head of policy development and operation, Morgan Dwyer, said, “It is not possible for me to commit or guarantee that any technology is without risk.”
Asked about legal responsibility for serious financial harm, compromised data, physical injury or a death, OpenAI, Anthropic and Meta gave no direct answer. Anthropic called liability a “big and complex” question involving the role of government. Google’s global director of AI and emergency policy, Alice Friend, said Google believes existing legal frameworks apply: “if it’s illegal without AI, it’s still illegal with AI.” Council Speaker Julie Menin told Friend, “Your answer is far clearer than the others.”
OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman told Politico’s Decoded newsletter that “the world should accept some bad things happening for the benefits of this technology and people having the agency.” He said OpenAI favors a “lighter-touch regulatory approach” and rejected a guarantee of “no major hacks” or “zero scams.” Dwyer told the council that OpenAI considers some risks unacceptable, but believes it’s important to put the technology in as many people’s hands as possible.
Public Costs and Proposed Rules
All 51 members of the New York City Council gathered for the hearing and introduced 10 proposed pieces of legislation on AI development, deployment and use. One proposal would establish a whistleblower incentive program offering up to 25% of proceeds recovered from a filed complaint. Another would require a “kill switch” in any AI system deployed in the city. Council members questioned company representatives about job losses, artist protections and data centers.
“Congress has failed to act, and the federal government has focused on the self-regulation of the leading AI firms,” Menin said. The hearing followed a White House AI accord signed less than a week earlier by executives from Anthropic, OpenAI, Meta, Google, Nvidia and SpaceX, who promised to self-regulate development. New York’s RAISE Act requires AI developers to publish and maintain safety plans before deploying models and report safety incidents to the state within 72 hours. Mayor Zohran Mamdani has also enacted city AI regulations, including a ban on AI in elementary and middle schools.
A Murmuration study found that 6% of Americans believed AI would mostly strengthen democracy. In an NBC News Decision Desk survey, 69% opposed construction of AI data centers in their local area. SpaceX was asked to appear at the hearing but didn’t; the city issued a subpoena on September 28 to compel the company to testify.
The hearing also addressed the value companies draw from workers’ knowledge. An Amazon Web Services report said knowledge companies haven’t entered into databases can offer a potential competitive edge. Tom Godden, an AWS executive in residence and former chief information officer, said, “Every organization has access to the same AI models, so competitive advantage sits in their own data, and above all in what their people know that has never been written down anywhere a system could read it.”