OpenAI: Resignations Follow Controversial Contract with the Pentagon

OpenAI Faces Turmoil After Military Contract

OpenAI recently secured a significant contract with the U.S. Department of Defense, marking a major commercial advancement. However, this strategic decision has raised questions about its impact on the company's reputation. Criticism is mounting both internally and externally.

On February 27, OpenAI announced this agreement with the Pentagon, coincidentally aligning with the U.S. government's announcement labeling Anthropic, a competitor of OpenAI, as a potential risk to the supply chain. This decision was driven by Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, refusing to allow his AIs to contribute to mass surveillance or autonomous weaponry. Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, assured that measures had been taken to prevent such abuses, but this has not been enough to quell concerns. Uninstallations of ChatGPT surged by 295%, and discontent is brewing among employees.

Resignation of a Key Figure

On March 7, Caitlin Kalinowski, head of the hardware unit at OpenAI, announced her resignation via a post. Kalinowski is no stranger to the field: she spent nearly six years at Apple, working on MacBook design, before joining Meta where she led the Orion project, an ambitious augmented reality glasses initiative.

In her message, she expresses her attachment to the Robotics team and the work accomplished, while explaining that her decision to leave OpenAI was not made lightly. She emphasizes that AI plays a crucial role in national security but criticizes the surveillance of American citizens without judicial oversight and lethal autonomy without human authorization, issues she believes have not been sufficiently examined.

Growing Discontent

Kalinowski is not the only one to leave OpenAI due to this controversial agreement. The contract with the Pentagon has caused a real shockwave among employees. Sam Altman has attempted to calm the situation by promising to modify the contract to avoid the most problematic uses, but this has not been enough to ease tensions.

Aidan McLaughlin, another researcher at the company, publicly expressed his reservations about the agreement. Another employee revealed that several of his colleagues admired Anthropic's stance, which chose to oppose the Pentagon, a decision perceived as courageous and ethical.

Meanwhile, the Claude app continues to dominate the U.S. App Store, capitalizing on this turbulent period for OpenAI.