- OpenAI’s offices apparently have undercover security guards, causing concern for nearby businesses.
- OpenAI is moving to an office in the Mission District in July 2023, but details are being kept closely guarded.
- California law requires unarmed security guards to disclose their license information to law enforcement.
OpenAI’s San Francisco offices are haunted by masked security guards who locals say don’t take kindly to questions, and employees at nearby businesses say they find it creepy.
Photographers from local online news outlet the San Francisco Standard said they recently noticed what appeared to be masked security guards standing outside the company’s offices.
A photo released by the media of a man believed to be a security guard shows a man wearing a black baseball cap, sunglasses and clear earphones.
Nearby business owners, such as Candice Combs of In Symmetry Spa, told the Standard that the men had not revealed who they worked for or what companies worked in the building where they were staying.
“I said, ‘Is this OpenAI?’ and they said, ‘We can’t tell you,'” Combs told the outlet. “I said, ‘Well, I know it’s OpenAI, and we have a spa that does massages, and we have a 10% off coupon.’ So it’s kind of an open secret.”
OpenAI will move into its first 59,000-square-foot office in San Francisco’s Mission District in July 2023. According to planning documents, the building will feature amenities expected of a Silicon Valley tech startup, including nap rooms, a kitchenette, a sunrise-watching lounge and a multimillion-dollar library spanning two floors.
The company has kept information about its office space closely guarded since the move, turning down reporters from Business Insider and other publications and refusing to confirm or deny the company’s location.
Ian Langlands, a cashier at a pet shop just a block away, told the Standard that the “atmosphere” surrounding OpenAI’s offices was “secretive.”
“They’re on guard duty and when I walk by the building or park my car, they look at me,” he said.
James, an employee at neighbouring business Health Ceramics, told the Standard he asked the men he thought were security guards if they worked security but they “never confirmed it”.
“[OpenAI] “They’re not bad neighbors, but they’re secretive,” he said.
The California Department of Security Investigations, which issues security licenses, did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment.
The department told the Standard that unarmed guards do not have to wear uniforms or badges but must be employed by a security company, legitimate business or public agency and disclose their licensing details to police.
OpenAI did not immediately respond to BI’s request for comment on Sunday.
