The controversy has been fueled by OpenAI's dual focus on safety and commercialization. While safety is built into the startup's core, its commercial aspirations are clear as it has aggressively pushed out new models to compete with rivals and is reportedly considering becoming a full-blown, for-profit company. This has led to accusations of the company talking out of both sides of its mouth, with the split between its focus on commercialization versus safety feeling more skewed towards the former.
Key takeaways:
- OpenAI, a high-profile startup, is facing controversy as a group of current and former employees signed an open letter asking for more transparency and non-retaliation against workers who raise concerns about AI's power.
- CEO Sam Altman is at the center of the controversy, with much of the outrage stemming from a lack of guardrails around artificial general intelligence (AGI), the idea that tech could ultimately outperform humans at various tasks and capabilities.
- OpenAI is perceived to be trying to balance safety and commercialization, but the split between these two focuses is believed to be more skewed towards commercialization, causing dissatisfaction among some employees.
- The startup is also reportedly considering adjusting its structure to become a full-blown, for-profit company, and has disbanded the team responsible for mitigating AI risks.