OpenAI announced that Paul Christiano is joining the OpenAI Foundation Board as a non-voting observer on the OpenAI Group PBC Board. He will also serve on the Safety and Security Committee (SSC) of the Foundation Board, working alongside its chair, Zico Kolter. The SSC provides governance over safety and security practices across all of OpenAI, including OpenAI Group PBC.

Christiano brings government and research experience to the role. He is a Senior Tech Advisor at the Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI) within NIST, part of the U.S. Department of Commerce. During his time at CAISI and its predecessor, the U.S. AI Safety Institute, he worked on evaluating frontier AI models, including capabilities with national security implications, and on approaches to mitigating related safety and security risks. He also founded the Alignment Research Center (ARC), a nonprofit focused on aligning advanced AI systems with human interests. Earlier, from 2017 to 2021, he led alignment research at OpenAI and contributed foundational work on reinforcement learning from human feedback (RLHF).

The announcement says AI is entering a new era of capability, making safety, security, alignment, and governance increasingly important. OpenAI describes Christiano as bringing a perspective that takes seriously the possibility that advanced AI could pose catastrophic risks, and that developers must prepare before systems reach more dangerous capability levels. It also notes that he has been an independent voice on whether industry safeguards are adequate, and that the Foundation’s governance is stronger with people willing to challenge prevailing assumptions and strengthen evidence, safeguards, and accountability in critical decisions.

The OpenAI Foundation is described as a separate charitable nonprofit that conducts its own operations while maintaining control of, and a significant equity stake in, OpenAI Group PBC. It supports initiatives in scientific discovery, civil society, and resilience through responsible AI, using grants, partnerships, and philanthropic programs to create public benefit and expand access to AI.