Whistleblowers at OpenAI have filed a complaint with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) asking it to investigate the company's non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). According to the letter obtained by Reuters, the complainants claim that OpenAI's NDAs may violate federal laws.
"Given the well-documented potential risks posed by the irresponsible deployment of AI, we urge the Commissioners to immediately approve an investigation into OpenAI’s prior NDAs, and to review current efforts apparently being undertaken by the company to ensure full compliance with SEC rules," the letter says.
The complaint alleges that OpenAI's NDA required employees to waive their federal rights. A spokesman for the SEC, in turn, declined to comment on the existence or absence of a whistleblower complaint.
Senator Grassley, whose office facilitated the whistleblower application, expressed concern about OpenAI's activities. “ Artificial intelligence is rapidly and dramatically altering the landscape of technology as we know it," Grassley said. "OpenAI’s policies and practices appear to cast a chilling effect on whistleblowers’ right to speak up and receive due compensation for their protected disclosures.”
The whistleblowers allege that OpenAI has entered into overly restrictive employment, severance, and non-disclosure agreements that could potentially penalize employees who reported concerns to federal authorities. The letter alleges that OpenAI required employees to give prior consent before disclosing information to federal regulators and failed to create exemptions for disclosing securities law violations to the SEC.
The letter also asks the SEC to require OpenAI to provide all contracts containing NDAs, including employment agreements, severance agreements, and investor agreements, for review.