What is the OpenAI Charter?

The OpenAI Charter is a foundational document outlining the organization’s mission, principles, and approach to developing artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Published in April 2018, it emphasizes OpenAI’s commitment to ensuring that artificial general intelligence (AGI)—highly autonomous systems that outperform humans in most economically valuable work—benefits all of humanity. The charter prioritizes long-term safety, technical leadership, and cooperation with other institutions. It explicitly states that OpenAI will avoid uses of AI that could harm humanity or concentrate power unduly, and it commits to using influence over AGI deployment to align with broadly shared ethical values.

One key aspect of the charter is its focus on broadly distributed benefits. For example, OpenAI commits to publishing most of its AI research to foster collaboration, though it acknowledges that safety and security concerns might require withholding details in some cases. This balance is evident in projects like GPT-3, where the model’s architecture was disclosed, but full training data and model weights were not released publicly to prevent misuse. The charter also highlights the importance of avoiding competitive races without adequate safety measures, which has influenced OpenAI’s partnerships with organizations like Microsoft, ensuring resource sharing while maintaining ethical guardrails.

From a developer’s perspective, the charter shapes how OpenAI tools are designed and deployed. For instance, the OpenAI API includes usage policies that restrict harmful applications, such as generating misinformation or abusive content. Developers using these APIs must adhere to guidelines that align with the charter’s principles. Additionally, OpenAI’s governance structure, including its board and partnerships, reflects its commitment to accountability. By prioritizing transparency in safety research (e.g., publishing papers on AI alignment) and collaborating with external researchers, the charter serves as a practical framework for ensuring AI advancements remain aligned with societal values, even as technical capabilities evolve.