OpenAI dismissed three safety researchers, Jasmine Wang, Tomek Korbak and Mikita Balesni, after an internal investigation found they mishandled sensitive company information, according to TechCrunch and The Hacker News, both citing the Wall Street Journal.
"We have parted ways with three individuals for violating our policies on accessing and handling sensitive company information," OpenAI said in a statement. "Our investigation confirmed that these individuals mishandled sensitive information outside established company procedures, violating our policies and breaking the trust essential to our work."
The researchers shared confidential details with an undisclosed third party AI safety organization, the Journal reported, according to both outlets. The Hacker News reported that Bloomberg identified the leaked material as related to OpenAI's infrastructure architecture.
All three researchers had previously raised concerns about the pace of AI development, according to The Hacker News. The dismissals follow a New York Times report that OpenAI had brushed aside employee safety warnings during model testing in favor of release timelines, the outlet reported.
A company dismissing safety staff for talking to outside safety researchers, rather than for being wrong about a risk, is the kind of move that makes current employees think twice before raising a concern through any channel other than the one their employer controls.