Now that we are finally getting mass confirmation about how OpenAI in fact, has signed a deal which allows DoD to be allowed having autonomous killing machines and people are boycotting OpenAI and all of this has reached the mainstream news.
Yes, even after Sam Altman's recent tweet which says that its gonna add more terms, that is debunked because those terms are just gonna say what OpenAI prefers DoD just in more stronger terms to do but in no ways are still enforcable. Right now, the way it is with current Deal. DoD could create autonomous killing weapons and mass surveillance with Directives issued by Pete Hegseth/Current Administration and OpenAI by the terms is allowed to agree to it.
To all the OpenAI employees who have signed notdivided.org petition (I am seeing 98 signatories), what are you guys gonna do?
> They're trying to divide each company with fear that the other will give in. That strategy only works if none of us know where the others stand. This letter serves to create shared understanding and solidarity in the face of this pressure from the Department of War.
Are you guys gonna stand for what you think is right. This question was asked by people when the OpenAI deal was announced but the optics at the time weren't clear. But now that some time has been given and people are absolutely clear that the deal that OpenAI have signed absolutely allows the use of creating of autonomous weapons
I don't think that OpenAI employees are gonna have a struggle of Money as some people try to point out. I mean, any AI company would be lucky to have you guys (imo) and they should be able to fairly match even OpenAI comp.
Someone from what I read (on HN), compared it to the fact that anyone who stays after 1 month from this happening will show the morals of the given situation.
I remember the fact that OpenAI used to be actually non profit and how employees left OpenAI because the non-profit actually fired Sam Altman.
I can't help but wonder if the board was right. I think the answer's yes. But my question is, OpenAI employees do have massive powers. I am sure that a lot of the people there would be better off sleeping that their work isn't contributing to building torment nexus.
I wish to propose that if OpenAI employees band together again, they can be able to do the same thing that they did previously, but now to revert that decision.
That is if I were an openAI employee, I gave a thought and here are all the things that I find are troubling which can be reverted:
1. Shut down the deal that they have with DoD period.
2. Actually shift from ClosedAI to OpenAI (Turn to a non profit structure as intentioned) and fire sam altman.
3. If something could be done about ramflation. I have seen projects being cancelled and Hosting providers shutting down or increasing prices because of 5x price increases, all because OpenAI tried to commit 20% of the world's entire Ram production.
But at least they signed off on a strongly worded letter …
Also, as OP pointed out, they can likely find similar comp elsewhere
Then one thing which I am not understanding is why Meta or Google or Anthropic even wouldn't match the COMP. It's obvious that they can. Meta Poached 100 Million $ engineers and spent 30 Billion $ trying to essentially get a single Guy from ScaleAI (Sort of) to work for him.
I don't understand why a company can't do the same thing now as well and even if not,
I do feel like another point is that these guys would be able to get hired anyway with same salaries or very minor cut or maybe even more. What OpenAI did was not only just not take part in all of this but they first agreed and then backstabbed Anthropic/their own people with this deal and when they got caught, they themselves admit that optics don't look good.
I don't quite understand with ALL of this, how OpenAI researchers in good faith could stay in that. They can easily get another job with similar Income.
Another key point but gpt 5.3 instant dropped, their first example is long term projectiles... Comments on that HN thread there pointed out how with all of the situation in wars and this whole situation. This just feels like putting salt in wound situation to me (personally).
To me, their gpt 5.3 drop looks like it might be smokescreen to quit the talks about the quitGPT or people cancelling chatgpt in large. There were comments talking about this as well on that HN thread.
But what I am saying is that Google might be better in that regards given that they didn't try to pester in and backstab like how OpenAI did. The bar is low but yeah...
That being said, even if these weren't these companies. To tell you the weirdness of the scale we are in here. A company spent 80 million $ on Ai.com and then their budget of where the site was hosted was free cf worker tier...
So a lot of market is essentially just kind of weird even now, This might be the biggest move by any AI company and the best investment to hire OpenAI employees en-scale. Perhaps Anthropic can do that too as I mentioned it earlier.
Imagine a company, which gave a place of employment and used talent of the engineers whose conscience denied OpenAI and the ones who wrote notdivided.org
These companies absolutely exist imo and as such, Money isn't a concern to OpenAI employees and neither should it be.
Atleast that's my opinion. Training and GPU costs for AI companies cost in magnitudes of several millions. To give a few several million dollars to get some good AI researchers doesn't feel so far fetched to me.
As such OpenAI employees shouldn't be worried about money. And they do hold leverage over OpenAI far more.
Atleast that's my opinion but I am curious to hear yours.
Yea, that is what I meant. I don't know what they are gonna do now and that is why I created this ASK HN. I am glad that you read my such a long Ask HN that it went with the HN word limit (4000) and even more haha, means a lot to me :)
[1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbKxUYl3WSE [video][44m]
"Although this idea might be naive but I haven't seen discussions about such things atleast on the public face on the internet but this idea did work the last time (for better or for worse)
the public has decided to show agency and decide not to use OpenAI period. And for a growth company like OpenAI, revenue loss is essentially the nail in its coffin. So people are realizing this and taking agency within this and their decisions matter.
But also OpenAI employees decision matters even more so. A 100 people not using OpenAI might not impact them but A 100 employees leaving OpenAI surely would. You guys have a factor of more magnitudes worth of say in all of this and have more power about all this situation.
And as the most famous quote that everyone grew up with, with great power comes great responsibility.
I hope that with this in mind, I hope that OpenAI employees can talk more about what's going on in their heads right now because we really need to have such a discussion and the best time is now.
Have a nice day to everyone reading this."