New York City Council invites OpenAI’s Altman, Anthropic’s Amodei to AI safety hearing

New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin wants Sam Altman and Dario Amodei in the hot seat. On September 15, she sent formal letters to the OpenAI and Anthropic CEOs, inviting them to testify at a special hearing on AI safety scheduled for October 5.

The format chosen for the session tells you everything about how seriously the Council is treating this. It will be a “Committee of the Whole” hearing, meaning the entire 51-member Council participates rather than delegating to a smaller committee. It’s only the second time since 2022 that the Council has used this structure, the last occasion being a session on migrant services.

Why the city is stepping in

Menin cited a “recent wave of alarming reports” about AI’s potential to cause what she described as “unparalleled cataclysmic harm.” Both companies maintain offices and lobbying operations in the city, making it harder for them to simply decline the invitation and move on.

The context for the hearing also includes recent reports of model containment failures across the AI industry, incidents where AI systems behaved in unexpected or potentially dangerous ways during testing.

The companies’ positions

Amodei has been one of the more vocal industry leaders calling for a measured pace of AI development, arguing that safety research needs time to catch up with capability improvements. Altman has expressed similar sentiments, though OpenAI’s development timeline has sometimes appeared to outpace the caution in his public statements.

Neither company has publicly confirmed whether their CEO will attend the October 5 hearing.

What local regulation could look like

The Committee of the Whole format suggests the Council is exploring legislation rather than simply holding an informational session. New York has a history of being an early mover on tech oversight. The city passed one of the first laws regulating automated employment decision tools back in 2021, requiring bias audits for AI used in hiring.

Any new rules could target several areas. Disclosure requirements for AI systems deployed in the city are one possibility. Mandatory safety reporting for companies headquartered locally is another. The Council could also explore restrictions on specific AI applications deemed high-risk, from autonomous decision-making in city services to consumer-facing products.

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