“I Feel Safe Expressing Myself to Leadership. I Love This Place”, 2023-11-21 (; backlinks):
I was recruited to OpenAI in 2019 to work as an engineer directly on alignment. [However, does not appear to be in Superalignment?] Geoffrey Irving hired me to that team.
Over my 4 years at OpenAI since that moment, Sam Altman and Greg Brockman have earned my trust, over and over and over again. They have my respect as leaders.
I think the good fruits of their hard work are self-evident, in the real value that we have brought to the world.
I had a formative moment early in my career when, as a young rationalist working at my first job, an EA colleague there who I deeply respect noticed some cliquishness I was giving off, and gently reminded me to remember to listen to my other colleagues, whether EA or no.
I’ve taken this lesson into the rest of my career. I think the OpenAI leadership does a very good job navigating the challenges of running a large and diverse organization, and that they exemplify the virtue of listening to all perspectives and choosing the right path forward.
I feel safe expressing myself to leadership. I love this place, and I love how open my colleagues are willing to be with each other.
I urge the board to consider the real and tangible value for humanity that we have created for millions of people. I choose to continue building with these excellent leaders.