Staff at the US center for AI safety are reporting to the White House, raising independence concerns

Burke reports that the Commerce Department's AI safety center has no permanent director, stopped publishing some research and was asked to report informally to a White House office. Former officials and civil-society experts worry that political control and reliance on companies' self-policing could weaken independent checks on systems affecting cybersecurity, privacy and civil rights.

The report also presents a counterview: closer White House coordination might bring the center more resources and visibility. It describes the center's small $10 million budget, leadership turnover, and a lack of shared methods to assess AI agents' full sequences of actions.