March 2 - OpenAI's chief executive, Sam Altman, said on Monday the company is working with the U.S. Department of Defense to add clarifying language to a recent agreement between the two organizations.
In a post on X, Altman wrote: "We have been working with the DoW (Department of War) to make some additions in our agreement to make our principles very clear."
Altman outlined one of the specific additions being pursued: it would record the Pentagon's affirmation that OpenAI services will not be used by Department of War intelligence agencies, which he cited as an example by naming the NSA. He added that any provision of services to those intelligence agencies would need a follow-on modification to the existing contract.
The comments come after the company announced last week that it had reached a deal to deploy its technology within the Defense Department's classified network. Altman's statement indicates the firm and the Pentagon are seeking to place explicit limits into their agreement about which parts of the department may access OpenAI's services.
The language Altman shared frames the discussions as additions meant to make OpenAI's principles explicit in the contractual relationship with the Defense Department. According to his post, one of those additions is an explicit affirmation from the Pentagon that access by Department of War intelligence agencies - for example, the NSA - is excluded unless a future contract modification is approved.
Beyond the specific line about intelligence agencies, Altman did not provide further detail in his post about additional contractual changes, the timeline for finalizing them, or how the additions would be implemented in practice. The announcement that OpenAI will deploy technology on the department's classified network, made last week, remains the most recent public detail about the commercial relationship between the firm and the Defense Department.
This update from OpenAI's CEO is presented as a clarification of principles and access rather than a description of newly expanded services. Altman's post focuses on the contractual language and the need for a follow-on modification should the Pentagon decide to extend use to intelligence components referenced in his statement.