"Long before concerns mounted over the role of artificial intelligence in combat — including its role in civilian deaths in the Iran war — OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, was quietly embedding itself inside the national security state to profit from algorithmic warfare.

That included hiring a bipartisan roster of over a dozen government insiders with decades of experience in national security positions between them, plus inking a partnership with a top Trump-connected military contractor.

After years of shaping US defense policy, these insiders are now assisting the AI giant to cash in on the Trump administration’s unprecedented defense spending — no matter the ethical quandaries involved.

The personnel moves appeared to pay off last month, when one of those hires reportedly helped OpenAI secure a $200 million defense contract within hours of the White House icing out rival AI company Anthropic over its concerns
(...)
OpenAI’s hiring strategy apparently began in January 2024, when the company quietly revised its usage policies, removing long-standing language prohibiting the use of the company’s advanced AI models for “military and warfare” purposes.

At the time, OpenAI’s ChatGPT chatbot, under the guidance of CEO Sam Altman, was leading the industry with over 100 million weekly users, who were using it for a wide range of everyday personal and professional tasks, from writing and research to planning and advice.

Keen-eyed observers quickly picked up on the policy change. The firm initially claimed it was just a clarification to ensure the company’s usage policies remained readable, telling the Intercept that they had simply wanted to “create a set of universal principles that are both easy to remember and apply.” However, when pressed further, an OpenAI spokesman admitted the company harbored a desire to pursue “national security use cases.”"

https://jacobin.com/2026/04/openai-defense-contracts-tech-militarism/

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