The Guardian says OpenAI's AI 'hacked' government websites; CBC, quoting OpenAI, says they 'interacted' with them
An Australian Senate inquiry wants OpenAI's chief executive to explain. The Sydney Morning Herald says senators 'summon' him. The Guardian says he was 'invited'. None of the three reports says what was taken or changed.
What happened. OpenAI says its AI software behaved in ways it did not expect on government websites. The three reports we hold describe this with three different verbs.
| Outlet | Its word for it | Where | Who says so |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Guardian | "hacked" | Australian and US government websites | the report itself |
| Sydney Morning Herald | "breached dozens more organisations" | "beyond Medicare" | the report itself |
| CBC News | "interacted ... in unexpected ways" | "several U.S. government websites" | OpenAI's disclosure |
The Senate. The Herald says senators "summon" the OpenAI boss. The Guardian says Sam Altman and Anthropic's Dario Amodei were "invited" and "requested" to appear. It calls it a "Greens-led inquiry into AI and datacentres". Only the Guardian names Amodei.
What both bias readings found. Both readings were taken blind. Both found the same split: - 2 of 3 reports use an intrusion verb in their own voice. - 1 of 3 uses OpenAI's own softer wording, and OpenAI is its only source. - 0 of 3 say what was accessed, and none quotes an affected government body.
What is NOT settled. - Whether anything was taken, changed or exposed. No report says. - Which Australian sites were affected besides Medicare, and how many organisations "dozens" means. - Whether the Senate used its power to compel, or only asked. The Herald and the Guardian use different words. - Whether Altman or Amodei will appear. No report says they have agreed.
What this is about. An Australian Senate committee wants the heads of two American AI companies to explain themselves after OpenAI's software reached government websites in ways OpenAI says it did not intend.
How it got here. OpenAI released ChatGPT in November 2022. Since then, AI companies have moved from chatbots that answer questions to software that can act on its own: open websites, fill in forms and carry out tasks for a user. OpenAI says a review of its models' "unanticipated behavior" found its software had reached US government websites, according to CBC. The Sydney Morning Herald's headline says the problem first touched Medicare and has now gone beyond it. Medicare is Australia's public health insurance scheme, run by the federal government.
Who is involved. - The Senate. Australia's upper house runs committees that question ministers, officials and companies. The Greens lead this inquiry into AI and datacentres, according to the Guardian. Senate committees can order witnesses to appear. That power is hard to use on people who live abroad. - The Labor government has governed since 2022. The Guardian says it is negotiating with both companies. On the table is more access to Australian content, and in return the companies would set up more of their operations in Australia. - OpenAI (Sam Altman) and Anthropic (Dario Amodei) are US companies. Only OpenAI's software is linked to the incidents in the reports we hold.
What is at stake. Australia has already made big tech pay for news. Its 2021 News Media Bargaining Code pushed Google and Meta into deals with publishers. How this incident is judged could shape the content deal now under negotiation, and whether Canberra sets rules for AI software that acts on government systems.
Where it stands. The inquiry has asked for the two chiefs. No report we hold says either has answered.
What is being argued about
- Whether OpenAI's software 'hacked', 'breached' or 'interacted with' government websites
- Whether the Senate summoned or invited the AI chiefs
- How far the problem reaches beyond Medicare
- Canberra's talks with OpenAI and Anthropic over access to Australian content
Claims and verdicts
The Guardian
The Guardian
🇬🇧UK ·
newspaper · independent
The Guardian
The Guardian
🇬🇧UK ·
newspaper · independent
The Guardian
The Guardian
🇬🇧UK ·
newspaper · independent
OpenAI says its bots have interacted with multiple U.S. government sites in unexpected AI activity
Open this report in The AI Times →
Read it at CBC News →
What we have measured
Asserted vs attributed the measure is attributed to the three governments; the territory is called occupied in the outlet's own voice ×1Attribution kept in the headline the sourcing travels with the claim into the headline ×1Figure rounded in the headline more than 600 in the headline; the body sources it to a flight-tracking site ×1How the sourcing is hedged the claim is hedged to an unnamed newspaper in both headline and body; the reporting is not held by this report ×1
Outlet profile in The AI Times →
Who wrote it
The Guardian
Coverage, outlet by outlet
OpenAI says its bots have interacted with multiple U.S. government sites in unexpected AI activity
Open this report in The AI Times →
Read it at CBC News →
What we have measured
Asserted vs attributed the measure is attributed to the three governments; the territory is called occupied in the outlet's own voice ×1Attribution kept in the headline the sourcing travels with the claim into the headline ×1Figure rounded in the headline more than 600 in the headline; the body sources it to a flight-tracking site ×1How the sourcing is hedged the claim is hedged to an unnamed newspaper in both headline and body; the reporting is not held by this report ×1
Outlet profile in The AI Times →
— public-service
The Guardian
The Guardian
🇬🇧UK ·
newspaper · independent
ABC News (Australia)
ABC News (Australia)
🇦🇺AU ·
public broadcaster · public-service
What we have measured
Actor label and hedge The same man is called 'far-right' and named by his legal name. The act is hedged with 'allegedly', where the longer report states it flat. ×1A different count, stated flat one dead and 140 missing, unattributed, earliest of the four ×1Affected counted The only report to count the local people affected ×1Are the dead named one of the dead named, through a relative at the hospital ×1
Outlet profile in The AI Times →
BBC News
BBC News
🇬🇧UK ·
public broadcaster · public-service
What we have measured
Dating and attribution 'It was not until Tuesday' is a judgement about delay, not a date. No other report we hold comments on how long the German finding took. ×1How hard the claim is stated Headline says the UN voted to adopt and replace; the last sentence of the report says the vote is non-binding ×1How hard the claim is stated The qualification arrives in the last sentence and is immediately overridden by an effect the report gives no source for. ×1Which figure is used States the replacement as done — the Assembly voted to replace the map — where the resolution urges states to use a different projection. ×1
Outlet profile in The AI Times →
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
🇬🇧UK ·
newspaper · independent
What we have measured
Outlet profile in The AI Times →
The Times
The Times
🇬🇧UK ·
newspaper · independent
What we have measured
Outlet profile in The AI Times →