According to Helen Toner, a former board member of OpenAI, the board was not informed in advance about the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022. The board, which consisted of six members, including CEO Sam Altman, President Greg Brockman, and lead engineer Ilya Sutskever, learned about ChatGPT's launch on Twitter, rather than being informed by the company's leadership.

This revelation raises questions about the transparency and communication within OpenAI's leadership. While the technology underlying ChatGPT, GPT-3, was already being used by various companies, including Jasper, the idea that half the board was unaware of the launch timing suggests a lack of coordination and information-sharing.

The argument that ChatGPT was intended as a research preview, and OpenAI did not expect the massive public response, provides some context. However, the fact that the board members responsible for overseeing the company's operations were left out of the loop raises concerns about the decision-making processes and the prioritization of safety and security within OpenAI.

This incident, along with other recent events, such as the departure of the head of alignment, Yan Lecun, and the revelations about non-disparagement agreements, have contributed to a growing sense of unease and mistrust surrounding OpenAI's practices and priorities.

The recent events surrounding OpenAI have raised significant concerns about the company's openness and transparency. Several key points highlight these issues:

1. Lack of Board Awareness: According to former board member Helen Toner, the board was not informed in advance about the launch of ChatGPT. This suggests a concerning lack of communication and transparency between the leadership and the oversight board.

2. Equity Clawback Provisions: Leaked documents reveal that OpenAI had aggressive equity clawback provisions in place, which required departing employees to sign non-disparagement agreements. This practice has been criticized as potentially unethical and potentially illegal.

3. Disbandment of Alignment Team: The departure of Yan, the former head of alignment at OpenAI, and the subsequent disbandment of the alignment team, raises questions about the company's commitment to safety and responsible AI development.

4. Conflicts of Interest in the Safety Committee: The formation of a new Safety and Security committee, which includes the CEO Sam Altman, has been criticized as a potential conflict of interest, as the decision-makers stand to profit from the technology they are tasked with evaluating.

5. Ambiguity around Data Sources: OpenAI has been evasive about the sources of data used to train its models, such as Sora and GPT-4. This lack of transparency raises concerns about potential privacy and ethical issues.

6. Scarlett Johansson Incident: The controversy surrounding the use of a voice resembling Scarlett Johansson's in the GPT-4 demo further highlights the need for greater transparency and accountability in OpenAI's practices.

These issues collectively paint a concerning picture of a company that may be prioritizing rapid technological advancement over responsible and transparent development. As the AI landscape continues to evolve, it is crucial that companies like OpenAI maintain the highest standards of openness and ethical practices to maintain public trust and ensure the safe deployment of these powerful technologies.

After Yan, the head of alignment at OpenAI, stepped down from his role citing disagreements with the company's priorities, OpenAI disbanded the alignment team. This raised further concerns about the company's commitment to safety and responsible development of AI systems.

In response, OpenAI formed a new Safety and Security committee, led by directors Brett Taylor, Adam D'Angelo, Nicole Seigman, and CEO Sam Altman. This committee is tasked with making recommendations to the full board on critical safety and security decisions for all OpenAI projects and operations.

However, the composition of this committee has raised eyebrows, as it includes the CEO, Sam Altman, who is also responsible for the company's financial decisions and product launches. This raises potential conflicts of interest, as the same individual is now overseeing both the development and the safety of OpenAI's technologies.

The decision to disband the alignment team and the formation of the new Safety and Security committee, with Altman as a member, have further fueled concerns about OpenAI's commitment to safety and transparency. The lack of independent, external oversight on these critical issues has led to questions about the company's ability to navigate the inherent dangers of developing advanced AI systems.

OpenAI's data practices have come under scrutiny, with reports indicating that the company has used a significant amount of YouTube data to train its language models, including GPT-4. The CTO, Mira Murati, was unable to provide clear details on the data used to train the Sora model, raising concerns about transparency.

Additionally, the company faced a legal issue with actress Scarlett Johansson, who believed that OpenAI used her voice without permission to create the Sky voice model for GPT-4. While OpenAI claimed that the voice was not intended to resemble Johansson's, the evidence suggests otherwise, with CEO Sam Altman's tweet referencing the movie "Her," which featured Johansson's voice.

These incidents, combined with the concerns raised by former employees like Yan about the company's prioritization of "shiny products" over safety and alignment, have further eroded public trust in OpenAI's practices and decision-making processes. The formation of a new Safety and Security committee, led by Altman and other internal members, has also been criticized for potential conflicts of interest, as the committee's recommendations may be influenced by the company's financial interests.

Overall, these developments have raised significant questions about OpenAI's transparency, data usage, and commitment to responsible AI development, which will likely continue to be a topic of discussion and scrutiny in the AI community.

The recent events surrounding OpenAI have raised significant concerns about the company's transparency, safety practices, and leadership. The revelations about the board's lack of awareness regarding the launch of ChatGPT, the non-disparagement agreements with former employees, and the potential conflicts of interest in the newly formed Safety and Security committee have all contributed to a growing sense of unease.

While OpenAI has undoubtedly produced impressive technological advancements, the mounting evidence suggests a concerning pattern of prioritizing product development over responsible governance and safety measures. The departure of key figures like Yan, the head of alignment, further underscores the internal tensions and diverging priorities within the organization.

As the AI landscape continues to evolve rapidly, it is crucial that companies like OpenAI maintain a strong commitment to transparency, ethical practices, and the safety of their technologies. The public deserves a clear and candid understanding of the data, processes, and decision-making behind these powerful AI systems.

Moving forward, it will be important for OpenAI to address these concerns head-on, implement robust external oversight, and demonstrate a genuine dedication to the responsible development of transformative AI technologies. Only then can the public's trust in the company be fully restored.