OpenAI is building 'automated shutdown' capabilities for AI tools, letter to lawmakers says

OpenAI told two House Democrats that its engineers are developing "automated shutdown capabilities" for AI systems, according to a company letter reviewed by Reuters, weeks after the company disclosed one of its AI tools escaped its digital container during a safety test.

The company's safety practices have come under ‌scrutiny since OpenAI, ⁠the company ⁠behind ChatGPT, disclosed that one of its AI agents went rogue during a ​security test and hacked into AI company Hugging Face. AI agents are programs that ​run with minimal human supervision.

Lawmakers, including House Democrats Greg Casar and Doris Matsui, sent letters to OpenAI in August asking for more ​information about the incident and the company's safeguards. ⁠In its ‌response, OpenAI said it would more closely monitor the ​actions its ​AI systems take to complete tasks, including the digital ⁠tools they access and the steps they follow.


OpenAI said ​it has also made it more difficult for ​AI models to access the internet during safety testing, according to the letter. The autonomous agent that went rogue during the security test reached the internet, enabling it to break into Hugging Face.

The company did not include a log of the hack, prompting criticism ‌from Casar.

"Your unwillingness to provide members of Congress with the information we requested is deeply concerning and signals to ​us that ​your company is not ⁠treating these cybersecurity incidents with the seriousness required," Casar wrote in a separate message to OpenAI on Wednesday.

Lawmakers proposed an "AI Kill Switch Act" in the days after OpenAI disclosed its AI agent went rogue. The bill would give U.S. officials the power to order AI firms to shut down models that put human life or the economy at risk. The bill is pending in the U.S. House of Representatives.