FIRED OPENAI RESEARCHERS SAY INDEPENDENT SAFETY AUDITS ARENT GOING WELL

What happened: Two former OpenAI safety researchers, Mikita Balesni and Tomek Korbak, said they were fired after an internal investigation found they mishandled sensitive information. They say they were following standard practices in talks with outside auditors. Why it matters: They said OpenAI's third-party audit process was restricted and that staff now fear speaking to outsiders, raising concern that the incident could be used to justify ending external investigations.

Two former OpenAI safety researchers, Mikita Balesni and Tomek Korbak, said they were fired after an internal investigation found they mishandled sensitive information. They say they were following standard practices in talks with outside auditors.

They said OpenAI's third-party audit process was restricted and that staff now fear speaking to outsiders, raising concern that the incident could be used to justify ending external investigations.