OpenAI Revises Pentagon Deal After Backlash
OpenAI is amending its new Pentagon contract after significant internal and public backlash. CEO Sam Altman admitted the initial deal looked "opportunistic and sloppy" and pledged to add language explicitly limiting AI use for mass surveillance and autonomous weapons following widespread concern from employees and digital rights advocates.
The deal materialized swiftly after rival AI company Anthropic walked away from negotiations with the Pentagon, citing concerns over the use of its technology for mass surveillance and autonomous weapons. Following Anthropic's refusal, the U.S. government designated it a "supply chain risk," a move that effectively bars it from federal contracts. The initial agreement's language, which permitted "all lawful purposes," sparked fears among critics that it could be legally interpreted to allow broad data collection on U.S. citizens. This concern is rooted in historical precedent, with legal frameworks like the FISA Act and Executive Order 12333 having been used to justify bulk data gathering. The backlash was not just theoretical; uninstalls of the ChatGPT mobile app reportedly surged 295% the day after the deal was announced. In response to the outcry, nearly 900 employees from both OpenAI and Google signed an open letter. They called on their companies to reject government contracts that could involve domestic surveillance or autonomous weapons, a continuation of a trend of tech worker activism seen in past military contract protests like Google's Project Maven in 2018. The revised contract language now explicitly states the AI system "shall not be intentionally used for domestic surveillance of U.S. persons and nationals." This prohibition includes the use of commercially acquired personal data, a key sticking point in Anthropic's negotiations. Furthermore, the updated terms specify that intelligence agencies like the National Security Agency (NSA) are barred from using OpenAI's services under this agreement. Any future collaboration with these agencies would necessitate a new, separate contract. In a public statement, CEO Sam Altman also said he urged the Pentagon not to blacklist Anthropic and to offer it the same revised terms. He stated he would "rather go to jail" than comply with an unconstitutional order, attempting to reassure both employees and the public of his commitment to ethical boundaries.
