OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says there is still a clear divide between his company and rival Anthropic on how artificial intelligence should be regulated. He made the comments in an exclusive interview with Decoded by POLITICO.
Altman argued that the benefits of AI are worth accepting some risks. He also said the technology should stay widely available to the public.
"I think there's a lot of daylight," Altman told POLITICO senior tech reporter Brendan Bordelon when asked about the gap between the two firms.
Asked where he differs from Anthropic and its CEO Dario Amodei, Altman said, "we believe that the world should accept some bad things happening for the benefits of this technology and people having the agency."
A Narrowing Policy Gap
Anthropic has long been seen as the strongest supporter of AI rules within the industry. OpenAI, by contrast, has favored a lighter-touch approach.
That gap has shrunk in recent months. OpenAI has backed tougher rules as it deals with high-profile hacking incidents and rogue behavior by its models.
Altman agreed with Amodei's call last month to slow the development of the most advanced AI models. OpenAI has also followed Anthropic in endorsing new state laws with stricter safety requirements than it had supported before.
OpenAI lobbyists also recently endorsed a bipartisan House proposal. It would require top AI companies to bring in outside safety evaluators.
Altman Draws a Line on Control
Despite the overlap, Altman tried to set his company apart. He referenced a criticism about regulatory capture that tech advisers close to President Donald Trump have aimed at Anthropic.
"I disagree, but I understand the perspective of people who are like, 'This technology is going to get so powerful, and it's so dangerous, that a single lab in San Francisco should have it and make sure nothing bad happens, and kind of figure out how to dole out the benefits,'" Altman said.
He called that view "a completely unacceptable trade-off" that goes against OpenAI's lighter-touch stance.
Altman said he would not trade wide access for a promise of no major hacks, no misuse and zero scams. He said he believes people will do "orders of magnitude more" good things than bad things with AI.
He added that he does not accept "the really catastrophic risks," including the chance of "a serious loss of control to AI."
An Anthropic spokesperson said the company's "regulatory proposals apply only to frontier models." The company also pointed to an August social media exchange between Amodei and an investment manager.
In that exchange, Amodei addressed criticism about regulatory capture and the effect on smaller companies. "Anthropic has always made its policy proposals very carefully," he said at the time, adding that the company aims to slow down frontier AI firms while helping smaller competitors.
The interview appeared in Monday's debut edition of Decoded and its daily podcast. It also covered Trump's new AI accord with top tech firms and his attempted "superintelligence" rebrand.
Other topics included autonomous hacking incidents carried out by OpenAI models and whether the company should face legal liability. Altman also discussed AI industry money in U.S. politics and his views on French President Emmanuel Macron and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
