OpenAI responds to departure of safety researcher: Due to violation involving sensitive information, not targeting safety concerns raised.

Beating AI News Flash: OpenAI's head of research issued a statement in response to an open letter from three former employees, Jasmine, Mikita, and Tomek. The company said that after a comprehensive investigation, it found that the three violated clear policies on handling sensitive information, and that the serious breaches of trust uncovered by the internal investigation went beyond what was disclosed in the open letter. As a result, it terminated employment with the three last week and is standing by that decision.

OpenAI emphasized that the decision was not aimed at raising safety concerns or publicly expressing opinions. The company said there are intense and critical safety and research discussions internally every day, and it encourages employees to raise questions; for good-faith mistakes, the company remains tolerant and will not fire employees for raising concerns.

Regarding the safety issues involved in the open letter, OpenAI said it is finalizing contracts with third-party safety assessment organizations, expects to announce details in the coming weeks, and has committed to including external evaluators in safety work. The company also agrees that maintaining the monitorability of frontier models requires industry-wide investment, saying this area has long been a research priority for it and that it will continue to devote substantial resources to it.