AI safety push may entrench big labs and squeeze smaller rivals

Critics say major AI labs like Anthropic may be leveraging safety concerns to push for regulations that favor large companies, potentially stifling smaller competitors through costly compliance requirements. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei proposed independent safety evaluators with employee-like access, which OpenAI's Sam Altman endorsed. Analysts argue such third-party evaluations could create a financial "moat" around big labs, as smaller firms may struggle to afford the expensive testing process. The labs face massive infrastructure costs, with Anthropic committing $517 billion in compute leases and OpenAI planning $750 billion in spending. While some experts believe genuine safety motives coexist with competitive advantages, others like David Sacks accuse Anthropic of pursuing "regulatory capture" to dominate the market.