OpenAI’s Sam Altman calls Pentagon deal ‘opportunistic and sloppy’ amid backlash; seeks further amendments

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly announced on Monday that the company is working with the Department of War to amend the contract to make their principles clear. He was of the view that the company would revisit the agreement to include some new language, adding that, “the AI system shall not be intentionally used for domestic surveillance of US persons and nationals.”

The recent revelation comes after the ChatGPT maker announced it had negotiated a new contract with the Defense Department on Friday. It happened just hours after US President Donald Trump directed federal agencies to stop using rival AI company Anthropic's tools.

In this connection, Altman said: “There are many things the technology just isn’t ready for and many areas we don’t yet understand the tradeoffs required for safety.”

“We were genuinely trying to de-escalate things and avoid a much better outcome, but I think it just looks like an opportunity and is sloppy." he further added.

The recent realization of the revised plan comes following a public feud between Anthropic and Washington over safeguards of its Claude AI systems, which leads to a collapse without reaching a final agreement.

OpenAI’s collaboration with the Pentagon came right after talks between Anthropic and the Defense Department. However, Altman told employees in a Thursday memo that OpenAI shared the same “red lines” as Anthropic.

On Friday, Sam Altman confirmed in a post that the Department of War agreed to the company’s restrictions. Altman’s recent statements reveal that these additions to the deal state that the Pentagon has affirmed OpenAI services will not be used by Department of War intelligence agencies.

There is still some uncertainty as to why the Defense Department agreed to accommodate OpenAI and not Anthropic. It has been observed that government officials have for months criticized Anthropic for allegedly being overly concerned with AI safety. OpenAI’s deal with the Defense Department sparked an online backlash, with many users reporting continued criticism and switching from ChatGPT to Claude on app stores.

In a recent post, Altman further shed light on the controversy, stating: “In my conversations over the weekend, I reiterated that Anthropic should not be designated as a supply chain risk, and that we hope the Department of Defense team will be the same team we’ve agreed to.”

Anthropic was founded in 2021 by a group of former OpenAI staff and researchers, and the company has marketed itself as a “safety first alternative.”