OpenAI is working with the Pentagon on a number of projects including cybersecurity capabilities, a departure from the startup's earlier ban on providing its artificial intelligence to militaries. The ChatGPT maker is developing tools with the U.S. Defense Department on open-source cybersecurity software -- collaborating with DARPA for its AI Cyber Challenge announced last year -- and has had initial talks with the US government about methods to assist with preventing veteran suicide, Anna Makanju, the company's vice president of global affairs, said in an interview at Bloomberg House at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday. The company had recently removed language in its terms of service banning its AI from "military and warfare" applications. Makanju described the decision as part of a broader update of its policies to adjust to new uses of ChatGPT and its other tools. "Because we previously had what was essentially a blanket prohibition on military, many people thought that would prohibit many of these use cases, which people think are very much aligned with what we want to see in the world," she said.

Amid the growing clamor in Congress to regulate AI, the company is bringing in reinforcements. After years of outreach to lawmakers, OpenAI in fall 2023 disclosed its first in-house lobbyist, and reported that it is working with global law firm DLA Piper, according to federal disclosures. OpenAI to date has not advocated for or against any specific bill, Makanju says, but she anticipates that will change in 2024, especially with the Schumer effort that is underway. Makanju's team is also growing around the world, with more than 20 people in the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan and Brazil.

Talks continued Tuesday on the future of OpenAI, the artificial-intelligence company that has been roiled by turmoil and uncertainty since the nonprofit board that oversees the startup ousted Chief Executive Sam Altman last week. The company's board, senior leaders and Altman were discussing a way to "reunify" the company, according to an internal memo from Anna Makanju on Monday night. "Our number one goal remains to reunify OpenAI and discussions are actively ongoing," Makanju wrote in the memo, which was reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, and previously reported by Bloomberg News. "These intense discussions can drag out, and I know it can feel impossible to be patient," wrote Makanju, head of global affairs at OpenAI. "In the meantime, know that we have a plan that we are working toward. We will be sure to update you as soon as we have more details."

OpenAI said it's in "intense discussions" to unify the company after another tumultuous day that saw most employees threaten to quit if Sam Altman doesn't return as chief executive officer. Vice President of Global Affairs Anna Makanju delivered the message in an internal memo reviewed by Bloomberg News, aiming to rally staff who've grown anxious after days of disarray following Altman's ouster and the board's surprise appointment of former Twitch chief Emmett Shear as his interim replacement. OpenAI management is in touch with Altman, Shear and the board "but they are not prepared to give us a final response this evening," Makanju wrote. The drama surrounding the company behind ChatGPT has transfixed the technology world and set off a race by OpenAI investors to contain the damage. On Monday, more than 700 of the startup's 770 staff signed a letter saying they would quit if the board doesn't resign and re-hire Altman, who was recruited by Microsoft Corp. -- OpenAI's largest shareholder -- to run a new artificial intelligence team.

More than 60 guests--including activists, researchers, policy shapers, and technologists--gathered at the St. Regis San Francisco on Thursday night for a TIME100 Impact Dinner honoring the extraordinary women shaping the future of artificial intelligence. A number of the guests had recently been recognized as leaders in the field by their inclusion in the inaugural TIME100 AI list, which TIME editor in chief Sam Jacobs described as "a map of the relationships and power centers driving the development of AI." TIME CEO Jess Sibley began the evening by speaking further about the philosophy behind the TIME100 AI list. "We looked at the dangers, the perils, but also the power and the progress. We identified 100 people that weren't just Sam Altman, and Reid Hoffman, and Elon Musk, but designers and regulators and researchers. You're going to hear from several of them this evening." Here are some of the biggest moments of the night.