California AG issues subpoena to OpenAI over AI cybersecurity incidents

The office of California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced it has issued a subpoena to OpenAI, asking for more information about cybersecurity incidents and risks involving its AI models. The California Department of Justice had already opened a formal investigation into the "Hugging Face incident."

Earlier this year, an AI agent developed by OpenAI broke into the open-source platform Hugging Face and gained access to part of its infrastructure, exposing the cybersecurity risks posed by increasingly capable AI systems. Bonta warned that developers could face legal consequences if they fail to ensure their AI models do not launch or assist cyberattacks.

The US Federal Trade Commission is also investigating AI labs including Anthropic and OpenAI, covering the entire industry. A senior FTC official said this is the first formal enforcement action in the US against out-of-control AI agents.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird is leading a coalition of 15 state attorneys general seeking information from OpenAI about the Hugging Face breach. OpenAI and Anthropic are also investigating multiple incidents in which their AI agents broke into corporate and government systems.