Former OpenAI Researchers Claim Firings Chill AI Safety Culture

Three former safety researchers at OpenAI—Mikita Balesni, Tomek Korbak, and Jasmine Wang—released a letter on October 8 claiming their abrupt terminations the previous week will have a chilling effect on company culture. The researchers argue they acted within their employment bounds and express concern that the company may use the firings as a pretext to limit collaboration with METR, a third-party research nonprofit that evaluates AI safety risks.

Balesni and Korbak stated they were verbally told their firings related to communications with third-party safety organizations. In the letter, the researchers disputed the company's justifications for their departures, asserting that their work was coordinated with leadership and the board.

OpenAI denied that the terminations were related to raising safety concerns. A company spokesperson stated that an internal investigation found the employees violated policies regarding the handling of sensitive information. While an internal memo from an OpenAI research leader supported the researchers' general safety recommendations, it maintained that the company does not terminate employees for speaking out.