OpenAI’s oppressive gag orders silenced ex-employees until now, two more speak out

Summary

For years, former OpenAI employees had to sign a document upon leaving the company stating that they would not criticize their former employer – or face significant financial losses.

OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, claimed to be unaware of these gag clauses. However, he had signed contracts that allowed the practice. Now, two more former OpenAI employees are speaking out against the company.

Gretchen Kruger worked in policy research at OpenAI for almost five years. Kruger writes that she shares the concerns of the two safety researchers, Jan Leike and Ilya Sutskever, who recently left the company.

She has additional qualms: Fundamental improvements are needed in “decision-making processes; accountability; transparency; documentation; policy enforcement; the care with which we use our own technology; and mitigations for impacts on inequality, rights, and the environment,” Kruger writes.

In general, tech companies could disempower those who want to hold them accountable by dividing them. She wants to prevent that.

Kruger praises her colleague Daniel Kokotajlo, who previously refused to sign OpenAI’s gag clauses and made them transparent to Vox.

Another former OpenAI employee, Jacob Hilton, signed the gag order about a year ago. “I signed a non-disparagement agreement, with non-disclosure about the agreement itself, for no other reason than to avoid losing my vested equity,” Hilton writes.

He left OpenAI on a positive note, with no intention of criticizing the company. But he was disappointed by the contract, which he says doesn’t fit with a company that promises to develop artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity.

“Because of the transformative potential of AI, it is imperative for major labs developing advanced AI to provide protections for those who wish to speak out in the public interest,” Hilton writes.

Hilton says OpenAI has since contacted him about lifting the confidentiality clauses.