OpenAI Adds Former NSA Chief Paul M. Nakasone to Board

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OpenAI is pleased to announce the addition of Paul M. Nakasone, a retired U.S. Army general and former director of the National Security Agency, to its board of directors. Nakasone brings a wealth of experience from his tenure as the longest-serving leader of the U.S. Cyber Command and chief of the Central Security Service.

“Mr. Nakasone’s insights will significantly contribute to OpenAI’s efforts to enhance cybersecurity by leveraging AI to quickly detect and respond to cyber threats,” OpenAI stated in a blog post.

In addition to his board membership, Nakasone will join OpenAI’s newly established Safety and Security Committee. This committee is currently engaged in a 90-day evaluation of the company’s processes and safeguards, after which it will make recommendations to the board and provide updates to the public.

Nakasone joins a distinguished group of current board members, including Adam D’Angelo, Larry Summers, Bret Taylor, and Sam Altman. Recently announced board members include Dr. Sue Desmond-Hellmann, former CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Nicole Seligman, former executive vice president and global general counsel of Sony; and Fidji Simo, CEO and chair of Instacart.

OpenAI is strengthening its board and executive team as its large language models become increasingly integral to the tech sector, amid growing competition in the generative artificial intelligence market. Since launching ChatGPT in late 2022, OpenAI has experienced rapid growth, alongside some controversy and high-level staff changes.

On Monday, OpenAI announced the hiring of two top executives and a partnership with Apple that includes ChatGPT-Siri integration. Sarah Friar, former CEO of Nextdoor and finance chief at Square, has joined as chief financial officer. “Friar will lead a finance team that supports our mission by providing continued investment in our core research capabilities and ensuring we scale to meet the needs of our growing customer base and the complex, global environment in which we operate,” OpenAI noted.

Additionally, Kevin Weil, former president at Planet Labs and senior vice president at Twitter and vice president at Facebook and Instagram, has been appointed as chief product officer. Weil’s product team will focus on “applying our research to products and services that benefit consumers, developers, and businesses,” according to the company.