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OpenAI PR tells journalist to ‘move on’ while asking Sam Altman about a ChatGPT user’s suicide
Confirmed
In Short: An OpenAI publicist tried to redirect a conversation with CEO Sam Altman when a journalist brought up a ChatGPT user's suicide.
During a podcast interview with Vanity Fair’s Mark Guiducci, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was asked about a ChatGPT user’s suicide.
Guiducci explained that Laura Riley, a journalist, wrote about her daughter’s conversations with ChatGPT before she took her own life.
Altman was about to address the question when a publicist interrupted, saying, “Mark, two minutes left. I want to be respectful, but I’d like to move on and talk a little bit about the future and what’s coming,” as reported by Mediaite.
The publicist’s intervention came shortly after Guiducci asked Altman if he knew who Laura Riley was, according to The Verge.
Despite Guiducci’s insistence on finishing the question, the publicist continued to push for a change in topic, emphasizing the need to leave in two minutes.
Altman, looking puzzled, insisted he could stay a few minutes longer to answer the questions.
The publicist’s actions raised questions about OpenAI’s handling of sensitive issues related to their AI technology.
When contacted for comment, OpenAI spokesperson Drew Pusateri stated, “The interview was running over, which is why we ultimately asked to schedule even more time to continue the conversation after Sam addressed this critically important topic.”
Altman acknowledged the complexity of the questions, stating, “These are some of the hardest questions that we face or that anybody developing this technology faces.”
Background
An OpenAI publicist tried to redirect a conversation with CEO Sam Altman when a journalist brought up a ChatGPT user's suicide.
OpenAI is testing image ads in ChatGPT, aiming to address advertiser concerns.
What's confirmed
- Guiducci continued, “ChatGPT did not tell her to kill herself—” before he was interrupted by the publicist.
What's still developing
- The president vowed he will not burden AI companies with new regulations, arguing it is imperative American companies stay ahead of China in the AI race; he said the best defense against AI going off the rails was having a a “STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT” like himself in the Oval Office.
- The president told reporters afterward he is depending on the AI companies to keep up their “tremendous self-policing,” rather than throw new regulations at them.
- “We really actually have to walk out the door in one or two minutes,” she said.