[liberationtech] OpenAI adds Trump-appointed former NSA director to its board

[Kate Krauss]

Sam Altman, one of AI's most important leaders--at least for now--is a man
with incredible contacts, wonderful social skills, and apparently few
scruples. Appointing the former head of the NSA to OpenAI's board
demonstrates that this company is unaccountable. This company puts
Americans--and everybody else in the world--at risk.

How can OpenAI be made accountable? The stakes are so high. Its board has
already failed to contain it.

Not even the worst part of this, but new board member Nakasone's hobby
horse is that the US must out-compete China in generative AI.

-Kate

ps: What happens at OpenAI if Trump is re-elected?




*Washington Post:OpenAI adds Trump-appointed former NSA director to its
board*
Paul M. Nakasone joins OpenAI’s board following a dramatic shakeup, as a
tough regulatory environment pushes tech companies to board members with
military expertise.

By Cat Zakrzewski and Gerrit De Vynck
Updated June 14, 2024 at 12:16 p.m. EDT|Published June 13, 2024 at 5:00
p.m. ED

The board appointment of retired Army Gen. Paul M. Nakasone comes as OpenAI
tries to quell criticism of its security practices. (Ricky Carioti/The
Washington Po
OpenAI has tapped former U.S. Army general and National Security Agency
director Paul M. Nakasone to join its board of directors, the continuation
of a reshuffling spurred by CEO Sam Altman’s temporary ousting in November.

Nakasone, a Trump appointee who took over the NSA in 2018 and was asked to
continue in the role under Biden, will join the OpenAI board’s Safety and
Security Committee, which the company stood up in late May to evaluate and
improve its policies to test models and curb abuse.

The appointment of the career Army officer, who was the longest-serving
leader of U.S. Cybercom, comes as OpenAI tries to quell criticism of its
security practices — including from some of the company’s current and
former employees who allege the ChatGPT-maker prioritizes profits over the
safety of its products. The company is under increasing scrutiny following
the exodus of several key employees and a public letter that called for
sweeping changes to its practices.

“OpenAI occupies a unique role, facing cyber threats while pioneering
transformative technology that could revolutionize how institutions combat
them," Nakasone told the Post in a statement. "I am looking forward to
supporting the company in safeguarding its innovations while leveraging
them to benefit society at large.”

Amid the public backlash, OpenAI has said it is hiring more security
engineers and increasing transparency about its approach to securing the
systems that power its research. Last week, a former employee, Leopold
Aschenbrenner, said on a podcast that he had written a memo to OpenAI’s
board last year because he felt the company’s security was “egregiously
insufficient” to stop a foreign government from taking control of its
technology by hacking.

Security researchers have also pointed out that chatbots are vulnerable
to “prompt injection” attacks, in which hackers can break in to a company’s
computer system through a chatbot that is hooked up to its internal
databases. Some companies also ban their employees from using ChatGPT out
of concern that OpenAI may not be able to properly protect sensitive
information fed into its chatbot.

Nakasone joins OpenAI’s board following a dramatic board shake-up. Amid a
tougher regulatory environment and increased efforts to digitize government
and military services, tech companies are increasingly seeking board
members with military expertise. Amazon’s board includes Keith Alexander,
who was previously the commander of U.S. Cyber Command and the director of
the NSA. Google Public Sector, a division of the company that focuses on
selling cloud services to governments, also has retired generals on its
board. (Amazon founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post.)

Until January, OpenAI had a ban on the use of its products for “military
and warfare.” The company says the prohibition was removed to allow for
military uses that align with its values, including disaster relief and
support for veterans.
“Our policies have consistently prohibited the use of our tools including
our API and ChatGPT to ‘develop or use weapons, injure others or destroy
property,’” OpenAI spokesperson Liz Bourgeois said. “That has not changed.”
Nakasone did not respond to a request for comment.

Nakasone brings deep Washington experience to the board, as the company
tries to build a more sophisticated government relations strategy and push
the message to policymakers that U.S. AI companies are a bulwark against
China.
“We want to make sure that American companies ... have the lead in the
innovation of this technology, I think the disruptive technology of this
century,” Nakasone said when asked about AI during a recent Post Live
interview.

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