Former DOJ Antitrust Chief Weighs In on AI Safety, Regulation, and Cartel Fears

Jonathan Kanter, former head of the DOJ Antitrust Division under President Biden and now a law and technology policy professor, spoke on The Verge's Decoder podcast about the growing debate over AI safety and regulation. Researchers at major AI labs such as Anthropic and Google DeepMind have publicly resigned, citing concerns that AI models pose serious risks and that safety is not being adequately prioritized. Some AI company CEOs have called for slowing development and have requested antitrust exemptions to allow firms to coordinate on safety measures, a move critics say resembles regulatory capture or cartel formation. Kanter, who led landmark antitrust cases against Google, Apple, and Ticketmaster, discussed how proposed AI regulations could interact with competition law and U.S.-China rivalry. The conversation also highlighted an unusual political alignment, with libertarian figures and progressive antitrust advocates alike pushing back against any exemption from competition rules for AI companies.