DOJ antitrust official says AI safety coordination does not appear anticompetitive

The DOJ's antitrust chief Stanley Woodward stated that AI safety coordination among rival companies does not appear anticompetitive, and the division is reviewing whether to update existing cybersecurity coordination guidance. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei had called for formal antitrust clearance to allow rivals to collectively slow AI development on safety grounds, while OpenAI's lobbyist said the company has been coordinating with Anthropic and Google on AI safety for weeks without needing a waiver. The FTC's Andrew Ferguson expressed skepticism about antitrust exemption requests from large companies. Public concern is escalating after a departing Anthropic researcher stated that AI builders believe the technology could kill people within the decade.