OpenAI reportedly hires former defense secretary Mark Esper to expand military AI work

OpenAI has reportedly hired Mark Esper, who served as Donald Trump's defense secretary, to help expand its military AI work, according to a post on X by Rohan Paul.

Esper previously led the Army from 2017 to 2019 and ran the Pentagon until he was fired in November 2020. He also spent seven years in government relations at Raytheon and backed the Pentagon's early AI ethics programs while defense secretary.

The report gives no start date, title, or terms of the hire, and it does not include a statement from OpenAI or Esper.