Zico Kolter Joins OpenAI's Board of Directors to Advance AI Safety

OpenAI is pleased to announce the appointment of Zico Kolter to its Board of Directors. Zico Kolter, a prominent figure in the field of artificial intelligence, brings with him a wealth of expertise in AI safety, alignment, and the robustness of machine learning classifiers. Currently a Professor and the Director of the Machine Learning Department at Carnegie Mellon University, Zico has spent over a decade contributing groundbreaking research that has reshaped the landscape of AI development.

Zico’s work has centered around the creation of new deep network architectures and the development of innovative methodologies for understanding the influence of data on models. His focus on AI safety has led to the development of automated methods for evaluating the robustness of AI models—an area that is becoming increasingly critical as AI technologies are deployed across various industries. Zico’s appointment to OpenAI’s Board of Directors comes at a pivotal time when the responsible and secure advancement of artificial intelligence is more important than ever.

In addition to his role on the Board, Zico will serve on the Safety and Security Committee. This committee, which includes directors Bret Taylor, Adam D’Angelo, Paul Nakasone, Nicole Seligman, Sam Altman (CEO), and other OpenAI technical experts, is tasked with making critical safety and security recommendations for all OpenAI projects. Zico’s deep technical knowledge in AI safety and robustness will be instrumental in guiding OpenAI’s strategies to ensure that AI technologies benefit all of humanity.

Bret Taylor, Chairman of the Board, expressed his excitement in welcoming Zico, stating, “Zico adds deep technical understanding and perspective in AI safety and robustness that will help us ensure general artificial intelligence benefits all of humanity.”

Zico Kolter’s academic journey began with a Ph.D. in computer science from Stanford University, completed in 2010. Following his doctorate, he pursued a postdoctoral fellowship at MIT, where he continued to hone his expertise from 2010 to 2012. Over the past 12 years at Carnegie Mellon University, Zico has been a key figure in the Machine Learning Department, making significant contributions to the field of machine learning. His work has been recognized through numerous award-winning papers presented at prestigious conferences such as NeurIPS, ICML, and AISTATS.

Among Zico’s many achievements is the development of the first methods for creating deep learning models with guaranteed robustness. His pioneering work on embedding hard constraints into AI models through classical optimization techniques within neural network layers has set a new standard in the field. In 2023, his team introduced groundbreaking methods for automatically assessing the safety of large language models (LLMs), highlighting the potential risks associated with existing model safeguards and demonstrating the importance of continuous innovation in AI safety.

Zico has maintained strong ties with the industry. He has served as the Chief Data Scientist at C3.ai, and currently holds the roles of Chief Expert at Bosch and Chief Technical Advisor at Gray Swan, a startup specializing in AI safety and security. His dual expertise in both academic research and industry applications positions him uniquely to contribute to OpenAI’s mission of developing AI technologies that are safe, robust, and beneficial to all.

As OpenAI continues to advance its research and development in artificial intelligence, Zico Kolter’s appointment to the Board of Directors marks a significant step forward in ensuring that the organization’s projects are guided by the highest standards of safety and security. His contributions to the Safety and Security Committee will be invaluable in shaping the future of AI, as OpenAI strives to create technologies that align with its mission to benefit humanity.

In welcoming Zico Kolter, OpenAI reinforces its commitment to pioneering responsible AI development and ensuring that the powerful technologies it creates are used for the greater good. With Zico’s expertise and leadership, OpenAI is well-positioned to navigate the complex challenges that lie ahead in the rapidly evolving field of artificial intelligence.