Defended or excused
“acted with integrity and generosity throughout”
Defends the team's conduct and says it sought coordinated publication, priority recognition and optional authorship arrangements.
- Speaker
- Sam Altman
- Capacity
- OpenAI leader who says he spent the weekend speaking with the team
- Observed
- September 10, 2026
- Published here
- September 10, 2026
- Targets
- OpenAI, Sébastien Bubeck
- Classification rationale
- Explicit interested defense of the company's intentions and actions.
Surrounding material
Full context
Before the quotation
Responds alongside Bubeck's detailed account.
After the quotation
Acknowledges difficulty offering the same arrangement to an Anthropic employee, while saying alternatives remained open.
Evidence
Complete source record
Sam Altman defends the team and explains its proposed publication arrangements (opens in a new tab)
Altman says he spoke with the team over the weekend and defends its conduct. His role makes this an interested defense, not an independent witness to every call.