AI executives push for antitrust exemptions to coordinate on safety

Executives at leading artificial intelligence companies have asked Congress for narrow antitrust exemptions or waivers that would allow them to work together on safety measures, according to a report on the industry's approach to looming regulation.

The request reflects a broader concern within the AI industry that competition law, as currently applied, could prevent companies from coordinating on shared safety standards even when such cooperation might reduce risks associated with advanced AI systems.

Antitrust hawks in Washington have signaled resistance to the idea, wary that exemptions from competition rules could allow dominant AI firms to shield anticompetitive behavior behind the language of safety cooperation.

The debate underscores a tension at the heart of AI policy: regulators want companies to share information on risks and failures, but doing so collectively raises questions about whether such coordination could also extend to pricing, market allocation, or other practices ordinarily barred under antitrust law.

How lawmakers resolve this tension is likely to shape the next phase of AI regulation in the United States, as Congress weighs competing pressures from industry, safety advocates and competition regulators.