August M
Debate over the role of artificial intelligence in warfare is intensifying as technology companies face pressure to work with the US military.
The discussion has grown sharper after OpenAI’s chief executive said his company has no control over how the Pentagon ultimately deploys its technology.
Concerns have also emerged among some AI workers about how their tools could be used in military operations.
Sam Altman told employees during an internal meeting that decisions about how artificial intelligence is used in combat or national security operations are made by government authorities rather than the companies that develop the systems.
“You do not get to make operational decisions,” Altman said, according to reports from Bloomberg and CNBC cited by The Guardian.
He reportedly added: “So maybe you think the Iran strike was good and the Venezuela invasion was bad. You don’t get to weigh in on that.”
Pentagon deal controversy
The comments come amid scrutiny of a recent agreement between OpenAI and the US Department of Defense that allows the military to use the company’s artificial intelligence tools.
The deal followed a breakdown in negotiations between the Pentagon and another AI developer, Anthropic, which produces the Claude chatbot.
Anthropic reportedly declined the arrangement due to concerns that its technology might be used for domestic surveillance or autonomous weapons systems.
US defense secretary Pete Hegseth subsequently described the company as a “supply-chain risk”, a label that could potentially affect its future government contracts.
Growing industry tensions
The Pentagon later moved forward with an agreement with OpenAI, a decision that triggered debate within the AI sector about how closely technology companies should collaborate with military agencies.
Altman has since acknowledged criticism surrounding the announcement of the deal.
According to reports, he said the rollout had been rushed and made OpenAI appear “opportunistic and sloppy”.
Sources: The Guardian, Bloomberg, CNBC
