OpenAI accused of self-censoring research by data scientist, who quits in protest making chief strategy officer Jason Kwon send company-wide memo

OpenAI data scientist Tom Cunningham left the ChatGPT maker in September. Cunningham allegedly left the Sam Altman-led company in protest of OpenAI's self-censorship of research on the adverse effects AI may have on a country’s economy.

The resignation marked a series of departures from OpenAI’s financial research team, prompting Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon to circulate a memo to all employees in the company’s bid to address research concerns, sources confirmed.A Wired report cited sources to claim that OpenAI has become more secretive about publishing research, making it difficult for the economic research team to release high-quality analyses.

In an internal farewell message, Cunningham allegedly wrote that the team faced growing tension between conducting rigorous analysis and effectively functioning as a public relations or advocacy arm for OpenAI. Cunningham’s resignation is one of at least two recent departures from the economic research team fueled by the alleged research pullback.

What OpenAI’s strategy chief Jason Kwon said on data scientist’s exit

In an internal memo following Cunningham’s departure, OpenAI's chief strategy officer, Jason Kwon, addressed the concerns. In a copy of the message seen by Wired, Kwon claimed that OpenAI should act as a responsible leader in the AI industry and must do more than just identify issues with the technology and “build the solutions” for them.

On his Slack message to employees, Kwon wrote: “My POV on hard subjects is not that we shouldn’t talk about them. Rather, because we are not just a research institution, but also an actor in the world (the leading actor in fact) that puts the subject of inquiry (AI) into the world, we are expected to take agency for the outcomes.”In a separate statement to Wired, OpenAI spokesperson Rob Friedlander noted that the company brought on Aaron Chatterji as its inaugural chief economist last year and has subsequently broadened its economic research activities.“The economic research team conducts rigorous analysis that helps OpenAI, policymakers, and the public understand how people are using AI and how it is shaping the broader economy, including where benefits are emerging and where societal impacts or disruptions may arise as the technology evolves,” Friedlander said.The report also arrives at a time when OpenAI is strengthening its multibillion-dollar partnerships with companies and governments to establish itself in the global economy.

Meanwhile, experts have suggested that OpenAI may have technology with such potential that it can revolutionise how people work.Since 2016, OpenAI has published research on how its systems can transform labour markets and has shared this information with economists outside the company. In 2023, the company co-authored "GPTs Are GPTs," a widely cited paper on which industries were most affected by automation.However, the two sources in the report alleged that this year, the company has become less eager to publish research studies on the adverse effects of AI on the economy, including job dislocation, among other issues.A third economist outside of OpenAI, with whom it partnered on research, claims it is all working towards them publishing more research articles featuring their technology in a more positive light. Recently, OpenAI released a study indicating that business clients claim to save 40-60 minutes a day using AI solutions.In fact, this is not the first time scientists have expressed doubts over OpenAI's publication choices. With former head of policy research Miles Brundage leaving in October 2024, who said, "It's become hard for me to publish on all the topics that are important to me," citing OpenAI becoming "too constraining even with expectations in place."