The man accused of throwing a Molotov cocktail at OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman’s home had written about artificial intelligence’s purported risk to humanity and intended to kill Mr Altman, authorities have said.
San Francisco authorities allege 20-year-old Daniel Moreno-Gama threw the incendiary device about 4am on Friday, local time, setting an exterior gate at Mr Altman’s home alight before fleeing on foot.
Less than an hour later, Mr Moreno-Gama allegedly went to OpenAI’s headquarters about 4.8 kilometres away and threatened to burn down the building.
Mr Moreno-Gama is opposed to artificial intelligence, writing about AI’s purported risk to humanity and “our impending extinction,” according to a federal criminal complaint.
FBI San Francisco acting special agent in charge, Matt Cobo, said during a press conference the alleged events were not spontaneous attacks.
“This was planned, targeted and extremely serious,” he said.
No-one was injured at Mr Altman’s home or the company offices, authorities said.
Accused faces state and federal charges
Mr Moreno-Gama faces charges including two counts of attempted murder and attempted arson in California state court, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said.
He tried to kill both Mr Altman and a security guard at the tech executive’s residence, she alleged.
Mr Moreno-Gama is set to appear in court on Tuesday and online state court records do not yet show if he has an attorney.
Ms Jenkins said the state charges carry penalties ranging from 19 years to life in prison.
A still of a suspect approaching the home with what officials described as a Molotov cocktail.()
(Supplied: US Department of Justice)
A still of a suspect raising their arm to hurl the Molotov cocktail.()
(Supplied: US Department of Justice)
A still of a Molotov cocktail in the air.()
(Supplied: US Department of Justice)
A still of a Molotov cocktail hitting a fence as a suspect turns away.()
(Supplied: US Department of Justice)
On Monday morning, FBI agents went to Mr Moreno-Gama’s home in Spring, Texas, a suburb of Houston, where they spent several hours before leaving.
He has been charged by federal prosecutors with possession of an unregistered firearm and damage and destruction of property by means of explosives. Those charges carry respective penalties of up to 10 years and 20 years in prison.
The federal court documents do not list an attorney for Mr Moreno-Gama and he has not yet had his first appearance in federal court.
Authorities allege Mr Moreno-Gama travelled from his home in Texas to San Francisco and visited Mr Altman’s home early Friday morning.
The home of Daniel Moreno-Gama after the FBI raid.()
Authorities say Moreno-Gama was opposed to AI
When Mr Moreno-Gama was arrested on Friday, officials found a document on him in which he “identified views opposed to artificial intelligence and the executives of various AI companies,” court documents say.
It discussed AI’s purported risk to humanity and “our impending extinction,” according to the criminal complaint.
The document also made threats against Mr Altman, officials said.
“Also 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,” Mr Moreno-Gama is alleged by authorities to have written in the document.
Surveillance video images included in the criminal complaint show a person dressed in a dark hoodie and pants that the FBI alleges is Mr Moreno-Gama approaching the driveway of Mr Altman’s home.
In various images, the person can be seen tossing the Molotov cocktail, which landed at the top of a metal gate and started a small fire.
Surveillance video images from outside OpenAI’s headquarters allegedly show Mr Moreno-Gama grabbing a chair and using it to hit a set of glass doors.
The suspect striking the glass doors with a chair (left) and being approached by security while holding kerosene (right).()
Authorities said Mr Moreno-Gama was approached by the building’s security personnel, who told investigators he “stated in sum and substance” that he came to the headquarters “to burn it down and kill anyone inside,” according to the complaint.
San Francisco police arrested Mr Moreno-Gama and recovered “incendiary devices, a jug of kerosene, a blue lighter, and a document”.
Mr Moreno-Gama was being held on Monday in the San Francisco County Jail on the state charges.
US Attorney Craig Missakian said authorities “will treat this as an act of domestic terrorism, and together with our partners, prosecute him to the fullest extent of the law”.
Sam Altman posted this photo of his family after the attack on his home.()
Hours after the attack on his house, Mr Altman posted a photo of his husband and their toddler in a blog post addressing the threats against him.
“Normally we try to be pretty private, but in this case I am sharing a photo in the hopes that it might dissuade the next person from throwing a Molotov cocktail at our house, no matter what they think about me,” Mr Altman wrote.
He added that “fear and anxiety about AI is justified” but it was important to “de-escalate the rhetoric and tactics and try to have fewer explosions in fewer homes, figuratively and literally”.
AP
