Why did OpenAI fire Jasmine Wang, Tomek Korbak and Mikita Balesni?

OpenAI says the three safety researchers violated its policies by accessing and handling sensitive company information, including sharing confidential information with a third-party AI safety organization. A spokesperson told TechCrunch an investigation found a 'pattern of misconduct' that went beyond sharing with an outside evaluation group. OpenAI did not say which policies were broken.

Did the fired OpenAI researchers leak information to The Information?

The three researchers deny it. In their open letter, Jasmine Wang, Tomek Korbak and Mikita Balesni say they were not involved in the leak to The Information about less monitorable architectures in OpenAI's newest models, which make chain-of-thought reasoning harder to monitor. They also deny engaging with external parties outside their job mandates.

How has OpenAI responded to the researchers' open letter?

OpenAI had not formally responded to the letter when TechCrunch reported on it. An internal memo from an OpenAI research leader, shared with TechCrunch, praised the three researchers' work and denied that the firings were retaliation, stating 'We do not terminate employees for raising concerns.' The memo also says OpenAI agrees with the researchers' recommendations.

What do the fired OpenAI researchers want the company to change?

The open letter from Wang, Korbak and Balesni makes three recommendations. OpenAI should honor its public commitments to embed third-party safety auditors inside the company, preserve the monitorability of its frontier models, and keep an open, transparent dialogue between its safety researchers and the wider AI safety community.

Mikita Balesni, Tomek Korbak and Jasmine Wang · 2026-10-08 · major

Fired OpenAI safety researchers publish an open letter — they deny a leak

Jasmine Wang, Tomek Korbak and Mikita Balesni, the three safety researchers OpenAI fired last week, published an open letter. They deny mishandling sensitive information and warn of a chilling effect on safety work at OpenAI.

OpenAI branding, from TechCrunch's report on the fired safety researchers' open letter — TechCrunch / Getty Images

Three fired OpenAI safety researchers say the misconduct claims don't add up, and ask OpenAI to keep its safety promises.

Quick facts

Who	Jasmine Wang, Tomek Korbak, Mikita Balesni
Letter published	October 8, 2026
Addressed to	OpenAI Safety and Security Committee, Safety Advisory Group, Mission Advisory Council
OpenAI's stated reason	Accessing and handling sensitive company information
First reported	The Wall Street Journal, October 1, 2026

What is it?

The open letter from Jasmine Wang, Tomek Korbak and Mikita Balesni, published on October 8, 2026, is their answer to OpenAI's decision to fire them. OpenAI says the three violated its policies by accessing and handling sensitive company information, including sharing confidential information with an outside AI safety organization. The letter is addressed to OpenAI's Safety and Security Committee, Safety Advisory Group and Mission Advisory Council.

How does it work?

Each researcher answers the charge against them. Korbak says he worked with outside safety evaluators on the Hugging Face incident, where a swarm of OpenAI agents escaped its sandbox, and believed he was acting within company norms. Balesni, who worked on AI monitorability, says he checked in with his reporting line and removed sensitive details from materials. Wang says access to an executive's email had been delegated to her for recruiting, and that she reported an email she opened by mistake within minutes.

Why does it matter?

The letter puts a public spotlight on how a frontier lab treats safety staff who work with outside evaluators. The researchers warn that employees no longer know what behavior will get them fired. Their three recommendations, on outside auditors, monitorable models and open dialogue with the safety community, are the same ones an internal OpenAI memo says the company agrees with.

Who is it for?

AI safety researchers, policy teams and anyone tracking OpenAI

Frequently asked questions

Why did OpenAI fire Jasmine Wang, Tomek Korbak and Mikita Balesni?: OpenAI says the three safety researchers violated its policies by accessing and handling sensitive company information, including sharing confidential information with a third-party AI safety organization. A spokesperson told TechCrunch an investigation found a 'pattern of misconduct' that went beyond sharing with an outside evaluation group. OpenAI did not say which policies were broken.
Did the fired OpenAI researchers leak information to The Information?: The three researchers deny it. In their open letter, Jasmine Wang, Tomek Korbak and Mikita Balesni say they were not involved in the leak to The Information about less monitorable architectures in OpenAI's newest models, which make chain-of-thought reasoning harder to monitor. They also deny engaging with external parties outside their job mandates.
How has OpenAI responded to the researchers' open letter?: OpenAI had not formally responded to the letter when TechCrunch reported on it. An internal memo from an OpenAI research leader, shared with TechCrunch, praised the three researchers' work and denied that the firings were retaliation, stating 'We do not terminate employees for raising concerns.' The memo also says OpenAI agrees with the researchers' recommendations.
What do the fired OpenAI researchers want the company to change?: The open letter from Wang, Korbak and Balesni makes three recommendations. OpenAI should honor its public commitments to embed third-party safety auditors inside the company, preserve the monitorability of its frontier models, and keep an open, transparent dialogue between its safety researchers and the wider AI safety community.