A coalition of artificial intelligence experts and former OpenAI staffers have raised concerns over the tech giant’s plan to transition into a for-profit corporation. They believe that this move could jeopardize the core mission of ensuring that artificial intelligence serves humanity as a whole, rather than just a select few shareholders.
OpenAI, a leading organization in the field of artificial intelligence, recently announced its intention to convert its for-profit subsidiary, OpenAI LP, into a Delaware public benefit corporation. This decision has sparked internal discord within the company, with critics arguing that it could undermine the original principles that set OpenAI apart from other tech companies in Silicon Valley.
The proposed restructuring would entail handing over full control of the business and governance to a for-profit entity, while relegating the nonprofit arm to charitable activities in sectors like healthcare, education, and scientific research. The group of experts, which includes Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton, UC Berkeley professor Stuart Russell, Margaret Mitchell of Hugging Face, and several former OpenAI employees, has penned a letter urging regulators in California and Delaware to intervene.
In their letter to California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Delaware Attorney General Kathleen Jennings, the signatories emphasized the critical importance of ensuring that the development of artificial intelligence remains aligned with public interests rather than profit motives. They argue that OpenAI’s unique nonprofit structure was specifically designed to prevent commercial influences from overshadowing its charitable goals.
The experts are particularly concerned about the potential implications of dismantling OpenAI’s nonprofit governance model, which includes safeguards such as an independent board majority and caps on investor returns. These mechanisms were put in place to safeguard OpenAI’s research on artificial general intelligence (AGI) from being driven solely by commercial considerations.
Elon Musk, one of OpenAI’s co-founders who has since left the organization, is already pursuing legal action to block the restructuring on corporate law grounds. The coalition of experts, however, is calling on regulators to step in and protect OpenAI’s charitable mission from being compromised.
In their letter, the signatories also request transparency regarding the decision-making process that led to the proposed restructuring, including whether alternative governance models were considered and whether board members stand to benefit personally from the conversion. They are also calling for the removal of any directors whose actions may have compromised the nonprofit’s integrity.
The experts highlight a potential loophole in Delaware law, which does not require public reporting of a public benefit corporation’s actions. This raises concerns that the restructured OpenAI may pursue lucrative ventures without accountability for their social impact. With SoftBank poised to make a significant investment contingent on the conversion to for-profit status, there are fears that economic interests could overshadow OpenAI’s original mission.
OpenAI’s evolution from a nonprofit organization to a “capped-profit” hybrid has been a contentious journey, with the initial formation of OpenAI LP in 2019 marking a significant shift in the company’s structure. The current debate underscores the broader societal implications of how artificial intelligence development should be governed and regulated to ensure that it serves the greater good.