OpenAI snags $256 million contract with US Defence Department
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OpenAI's pilot programme is aimed at helping the US Defence Department determine how it could use AI for tasks.
FILE PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON – OpenAI has won a US$200 million (S$256 million) contract for a pilot programme aimed at helping the US Defence Department determine how it could use artificial intelligence (AI) for a range of administrative and security tasks.
The one-year contract, which the Defence Department disclosed on June 16, is the latest push by the ChatGPT maker to sell its technology to the US government.
In a blog post on June 16, OpenAI said the contract is the company’s first project under a new entity it is calling OpenAI for Government.
As part of the effort, OpenAI will work with the Defence Department to come up with ways that AI can help with administrative tasks, such as getting healthcare for US military members and helping prevent cyber attacks.
OpenAI for Government consolidates all of OpenAI’s existing government projects in one area of the company, including ChatGPT Gov – a version of ChatGPT meant for government workers – as well as its work with US space agency Nasa, the National Institutes of Health, the Air Force Research Laboratory and the Treasury Department.
The company also said late in 2024 that it would partner with weapons maker Anduril Industries to build AI for anti-drone systems, in another sign of its expanding work with the US government, particularly around national security.
In recent months, OpenAI has said that it plans to build out AI tools that uphold democratic values. The AI start-up has also brought in a former top Pentagon official to lead its national security policy team and added the former head of the National Security Agency to its board. BLOOMBERG
