On August 19th at 7:07PM, Tyler Johnston received a message from his roommate. A man, the text said, was knocking on their door with legal documents to serve.
Johnston is the founder of The Midas Project: a nonprofit that monitors the practices of “leading AI companies to ensure transparency, privacy, and ethical standards are maintained.” At the time, he was also the sole full-time employee. The Midas Project is behind The OpenAI Files, a 50-page report about OpenAI’s evolution from under-the-radar nonprofit to moneymaking household name. It organized an open letter to OpenAI asking for transparency about its transition to a for-profit com …
