Geoffrey Hinton, known as the “Godfather of AI,” has joined a growing chorus of experts and former employees urging regulators to block OpenAI's controversial restructuring plans.
What Happened: On Monday, Hinton took to X, formerly Twitter, expressing support for efforts to halt OpenAI's transition to a more profit-driven structure.
"I like OpenAI's mission of ‘ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity,' and I'd like to stop them from completely gutting it," he wrote.
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The AI expert has signed an open letter addressed to California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings. The letter calls on regulators to intervene in OpenAI's plan to remove the nonprofit's controlling role over the company's direction.
"AGI is the most important and potentially dangerous technology of our time," Hinton added in a follow-up post. "OpenAI was right that this technology merits strong structures and incentives to ensure it is developed safely, and is wrong now in attempting to change these structures and incentives."
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The letter, hosted on NotForPrivateGain.org, is backed by more than 30 signatories, including former OpenAI researchers, academics, and ethics leaders.
It argues that OpenAI's restructuring "would eliminate crucial governance safeguards" and violate the nonprofit's responsibility to prioritize public interest.
Why It's Important: OpenAI, which created ChatGPT, remains a leading force in artificial intelligence development.
The concerns raised by Hinton align with a lawsuit filed by Elon Musk, whose company, xAI, is now a direct competitor of OpenAI.
Critics say its shift toward a for-profit model—reportedly necessary to secure a $40 billion investment from SoftBank Group SFTBF SFTBY—risks undermining its original mission to develop AGI safely and ethically.
Microsoft Corporation MSFT, which has poured close to $14 billion into OpenAI, could face major consequences if regulators move to block the proposed restructuring.
OpenAI maintains that its nonprofit will remain intact and likened its new structure to public benefit corporations like Anthropic.
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