OpenAI's safety chief leaves, team restructures

Johannes Heidecke, OpenAI's head of safety systems, told employees this week he's leaving the company. He joined OpenAI in 2021 as an AI safety analyst and took over the role in 2024 after the previous safety lead, Lilian Weng, left.

This change comes after a company restructuring aimed at merging research and safety teams. An internal memo says Chief Research Officer Mark Chen confirmed the safety team will now report to research VP Mia Glaese, who will also serve as VP of Research and Safety.