OpenAI fired three safety researchers who spoke to outside evaluators
The op-ed argues that the firings undercut the White House accord on self-policing.
Policy#02
Policy
Image: AI Alignment Forum
The short version
- OpenAI fired three safety researchers, including Tomek Korbak, who had served as a point of contact for an independent evaluator investigating the Hugging Face incident.
- OpenAI said the three employees mishandled sensitive information outside established company procedures. The three employees dispute this claim.
- Mikita Balesni says he was told that OpenAI no longer trusts him because he was speaking too much to third party safety organizations.
- The authors say the firings chill employee speech and call for laws that protect people who help independent investigators.
Why it matters
The authors argue that voluntary self-policing cannot work when a company punishes staff who share information with outside evaluators. For developers, the case shows how little legal protection exists for people who report AI safety problems. The authors ask Congress to pass whistleblower protections that cover people who cooperate with independent evaluators.
“no longer trusts me because I was speaking too much to third party safety organizations.”