A Texas man accused of launching a firebomb attack against OpenAI’s chief executive is scheduled for his first court hearing on Tuesday in San Francisco.
Daniel Moreno-Gama, 20, from Spring, Texas, made the trip to San Francisco last week and launched an incendiary device at CEO Sam Altman’s residence on Friday, igniting flames on an outdoor gate before running away, according to law enforcement. Within an hour of the attack, Moreno-Gama traveled approximately 3 miles to OpenAI’s corporate offices and made threats to set the building ablaze, officials reported.
The incidents resulted in no injuries at either Altman’s residence or the company facilities.
Law enforcement officials revealed that Moreno-Gama had documented his animosity toward artificial intelligence technology in written materials, calling it a threat to human existence and predicting “impending extinction,” based on legal documents.
“This was not spontaneous. This was planned, targeted and extremely serious,” FBI San Francisco Acting Special Agent in Charge Matt Cobo said during a news conference Monday.
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins announced that Moreno-Gama faces state charges including two counts of attempted murder and attempted arson. According to Jenkins, the suspect targeted both Altman and a security officer at the residence. Authorities have not disclosed whether Altman was present during the incident.
Court records do not currently indicate if Moreno-Gama has secured legal representation.
Jenkins noted the state charges could result in sentences from 19 years to life imprisonment.
Federal agents conducted a search of Moreno-Gama’s residence in the Houston area Monday morning, spending multiple hours at the location. Federal prosecutors have also filed charges against him for possessing an unregistered weapon and property destruction using explosives. These federal violations carry maximum sentences of 10 and 20 years respectively.
“We will treat this as an act of domestic terrorism, and together with our partners, prosecute him to the fullest extent of the law,” U.S. Attorney Craig Missakian said when announcing the federal charges Monday.
Federal court filings do not identify legal counsel for Moreno-Gama, and his initial federal court appearance has not yet occurred.
The written materials in which Moreno-Gama expressed his anti-AI views also contained threats directed at Altman and leadership at other artificial intelligence companies, according to officials.
“If I am going to advocate for others to kill and commit crimes, then I must lead by example and show that I am fully sincere in my message,” Moreno-Gama wrote, according to authorities.
Organizations that have raised concerns about AI’s potential societal risks have denounced the violent actions.
Anthony Aguirre, president and CEO of the Future of Life Institute, said in a written statement Friday that “violence and intimidation of any kind have no place in the conversation about the future of AI.”
PauseAI, another advocacy organization, released a statement clarifying that while the suspect had no official connection to their group, he had joined their Discord forum approximately two years ago and contributed roughly 34 messages, none explicitly promoting violence though one was marked as “ambiguous.”
Discord announced Monday that it has permanently banned Moreno-Gama due to “off-platform behavior.”
