OpenAI has hired former Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll as a senior adviser, bringing a former Pentagon official into the company as it expands into the defense and national security sector.
The ChatGPT maker said Monday that Driscoll will advise senior leadership on how advanced artificial intelligence can boost national security and cybersecurity, with a particular focus on cooperation with the United States’ allies.
In this new role, Driscoll will also help OpenAI teams to “understand the operational needs of global national security institutions.”
Driscoll said he was joining the company to help the United States and its allies deploy AI technology responsibly.
“The people who serve deserve the very best tools we can put in their hands,” Driscoll said in a statement.
“National security requirements are changing faster than at any time in the past 50 years,” he added. “This technology will help them keep pace by cutting through paperwork, making sense of more information, and getting the right answer to the right person faster.”
From the Army to OpenAI
Driscoll is an Army veteran who served in Iraq. He later attended Yale Law School, where he became a close friend of JD Vance, who would go on to become vice president.
As the Army’s civilian leader, Driscoll pushed the service to adopt new battlefield technologies and rethink how it buys equipment. That included expanding partnerships with tech companies and startups, rather than relying exclusively on the large defense contractors that have traditionally supplied the military.
He also simultaneously served for a period as acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
Driscoll stepped down as Army secretary in early September after roughly 18 months in the job. No detailed public explanation was given for his resignation.
His departure came amid broader turnover in the Army and Pentagon leadership.
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George was removed from the post in April, more than a year before the end of his four-year term. In July, Gen. Christopher Donahue relinquished command of U.S. Army Europe and Africa after only 18 months in the role; he also stepped down as commander of NATO’s Allied Land Command.
Secretary of the Navy John Phelan also stepped down in April, following what President Donald Trump described as disagreements with some officials about “building and buying new ships.”
OpenAI Expands National Security Work
Driscoll’s hiring comes as OpenAI deepens its relationship with the U.S. government and military.
OpenAI previously created OpenAI for Government, bringing several existing federal partnerships under one organization.
Its initial agreement with the Department of War carried a ceiling of $200 million and focused on potential uses of AI ranging from administrative work and acquisition analysis to cyber defense.
OpenAI has also said ChatGPT would be made available through the Pentagon’s secure GenAI.mil platform, which serves military and civilian personnel.
The company later reached an agreement to deploy advanced AI systems in classified environments, further expanding its role in national-security work.
OpenAI has said its national-security agreements include restrictions against using its technology for mass domestic surveillance, independently directing autonomous weapons, or making certain high-stakes decisions without human oversight.
