Australia Summons OpenAI and Anthropic CEOs Over AI Inquiry
Sam Altman and Dario Amodei have been asked to appear before an Australian Senate inquiry examining AI safety, data transparency and the risks posed by increasingly autonomous AI systems.
Australia has called on OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei to appear before a Senate inquiry examining artificial intelligence and data centres. Written requests were sent to both executives ahead of public hearings scheduled in Canberra on October 1, according to reporting from Reuters and other Australian media. The inquiry is examining the potential effects of AI and data centres on safety, data transparency, Australian communities and industries, as well as water and energy use.
The request comes shortly after an incident involving an OpenAI AI agent and an Australian government Medicare statistics portal. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the agent accessed both public and non-public files on June 18, including non-public aggregate health statistics and internal files. Australian authorities said there was no evidence that individual Medicare records or personal information had been accessed, while a government-led review is investigating the incident.
The Australian government has also questioned the delay in reporting the incident. According to ABC News, OpenAI became aware of the activity during an internal review in August but did not notify Services Australia until September 10. Prime Minister Albanese subsequently spoke directly with Altman and publicly raised concerns about the company’s handling of the disclosure. The government has established a rapid review involving the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, the Australian Signals Directorate, the Australian AI Safety Institute and Services Australia.
Anthropic’s involvement in the Senate inquiry is broader and does not mean the company was responsible for the Medicare incident. Amodei has been asked to appear alongside Altman because the inquiry covers the wider development and deployment of AI systems and their potential effects in Australia. The companies have also recently been involved in discussions with the Australian government over AI policy and copyright rules, with both calling for changes that would allow certain AI-training activities under specified conditions.
The hearings could therefore provide Australian lawmakers with an opportunity to question major AI companies about model safety, transparency, incident reporting and the safeguards surrounding autonomous AI agents. Whether Altman and Amodei will personally attend has not yet been confirmed, and OpenAI and Anthropic had not immediately responded to requests for comment when the latest reports were published.
