OpenAI Disbands AI Safety Team Before IPO

OpenAI dissolved its preparedness team — which assessed catastrophic risks from new AI models before deployment — in late July 2026, calling it a "streamlining process" ahead of its IPO. CEO Sam Altman urged staff to drop "side quests" and focus on ChatGPT. Preparedness duties were reassigned to senior staff elsewhere. The move follows the departures of safety head Johannes Heidecke and ethics lead Chloé Bakalar.