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OpenAI Folds Safety Into Research as Head of Safety Exits
The safety teams will now report to Mia Glaese as OpenAI says faster model releases are creating bigger coordination challenges, Mark Chen said.
- OpenAI head of safety systems Johannes Heidecke is leaving the company following an internal restructuring that merges safety and research teams under Mia Glaese, Chief Research Officer Mark Chen announced Friday.
- Chen stated it is "important that our safety work is integrated with frontier-model development," though critics argue that safety teams reporting inside research lose structural independence and leverage to block products.
- Saachi Jain will serve as interim head of safety systems. This follows Chief Futurist Joshua Achiam's departure earlier this week after nine years researching safety, marking the latest in a string of senior safety leadership exits.
- The departures coincide with intensifying external scrutiny as Forty-two state attorneys general have subpoenaed OpenAI regarding advertising and user data. OpenAI recently released GPT-5.6, its most capable model for agentic coding tasks.
- This marks the second time in less than two years that OpenAI has folded its safety organization into a research-led structure. Mia Glaese's expanded title signals the company intends for safety to remain a named priority despite integration.
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OpenAI safety head exits following leadership reorganisation
Johannes Heidecke, OpenAI's head of safety systems, is leaving the company. Vice president of research and head of alignment Mia Glaese will take on an expanded role overseeing both the company's research and safety teams, while Saachi Jain has been appointed interim head of safety systems and will report to Glaese, Wired reported.
·India
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources13
Leaning Left4Leaning Right2Center1Last UpdatedBias Distribution57% Left
Bias Distribution
- 57% of the sources lean Left
57% Left
L 57%
14%
R 29%
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