OpenAI whistleblowers have accused the company of illegally barring employees from alerting regulators about potential safety risks it poses.
The complaint was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
It calls for investigations into OpenAI’s restrictive employment, severance, and nondisclosure agreements.
The whistleblowers claim OpenAI’s agreements required employees to waive their federal rights to whistleblower compensation.
It also required them to obtain company consent before disclosing information to federal authorities.
These agreements, which lacked exemptions for reporting securities violations, potentially violated federal laws protecting whistleblowers from retaliation.
One whistleblower said: “These contracts sent a message that ‘we don’t want … employees talking to federal regulators.
“I don’t think that AI companies can build technology that is safe and in the public interest if they shield themselves from scrutiny and dissent.”
OpenAI spokesperson Hannah Wong said: “Our whistleblower policy protects employees’ rights to make protected disclosures.
“Additionally, we believe rigorous debate about this technology is essential and have already made important changes to our departure process to remove nondisparagement terms.”
The whistleblowers’ letter raises concerns OpenAI, originally a nonprofit with an altruistic mission, is prioritizing profit over safety.
The Post reported OpenAI rushed the release of its latest AI model to meet a deadline.
This was despite employee concerns it had not met its own security protocols.
Tech companies’ strict confidentiality agreements have long troubled workers and regulators.
“I don’t think that AI companies can build technology that is safe and in the public interest if they shield themselves from scrutiny and dissent”
These agreements have been criticized for limiting employees’ ability to report issues like sexual misconduct, racial discrimination, and other violations.
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Regulators have expressed concern such terms muzzle employees who could alert them to misconduct in the tech sector.
The SEC has responded to the whistleblowers’ complaint, submitted in June, but it is unclear if an investigation has been launched.
In the letter, whistleblowers urge the SEC to take “swift and aggressive” action against these agreements.
It states these agreements might be relevant to the AI industry.
It also claims the agreements could violate a White House executive order demanding AI companies develop technology safely.
The whistleblowers’ letter calls for the SEC to review all OpenAI agreements containing nondisclosure clauses;
It also asks the company to notify past and current employees of their rights to report violations.
The letter also requests fines for each improper agreement and measures to counteract the “chilling effect” of past practices.
