The man accused of tossing a Molotov cocktail at the San Francisco home of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was found with an “anti-AI” document that listed off the names and addresses of other AI CEOs and investors, according to the feds.
Daniel Moreno-Gama, who was booked on multiple state charges, including attempted murder, according to jail records, is now facing federal charges in connection with Friday’s attack. A federal criminal complaint viewed by Business Insider charged him with possession of an unregistered firearm and attempted damage and destruction of property by means of explosives.
It was not immediately clear whether Moreno-Gama has retained an attorney.
According to an affidavit by an FBI agent, authorities said the 20-year-old traveled from Texas to California and, in the early morning hours, threw a Molotov cocktail at two neighboring homes owned by Altman. The device caused a fire at the top of the driveway gate, and the suspect fled the scene, the affidavit says.
DOJ
About an hour and a half later, the feds say the suspect arrived at OpenAI’s San Francisco headquarters, took a chair and used it to strike the glass doors. His actions were captured on surveillance footage, the court papers say.
On-site security personnel reported that the suspect said he came to “burn it down and kill anyone inside,” the affidavit says.
Officers with the San Francisco Police Department ultimately arrested Moreno-Gama and recovered “incendiary devices,” a jug of kerosene, a blue lighter, and the anti-AI document, the court papers say.
The affidavit says the document was a three-part series that “identified views opposed to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the executives of various AI companies, including Victim-1.” Victim-1 refers to Altman, who later confirmed the attack on his blog.
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The first part of the document was titled “Your Last Warning” followed by the suspect’s name. In that part of the missive, he allegedly said that he ‘killed/attempted to kill’ Victim-1,” according to the affidavit.
“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,” the document read, the affidavit says.
The document then listed the names of apparent board members, AI company CEOs, and investors, the court papers say.
The second part of the document was titled, “Some more words on the matter of our impending extinction,” and detailed the “purported risk AI poses to humanity,” the feds said.
The third part was a letter addressed to Altman that began with “if you make it,” according to the court papers. “If by some miracle you live, then I would take this as a sign from the divine to redeem yourself,” the letter said, according to the affidavit.
Online records show that Moreno-Gama remains behind bars at the San Francisco County Jail.
In the aftermath of the attack on his home, Altman took to his blog and posted a photo of his husband and their son.
“Images have power, I hope. 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,” Altman wrote.
“The first person did it last night, at 3:45 am in the morning. Thankfully it bounced off the house and no one got hurt,” he said.
The OpenAI CEO went on to say that AI “will be the most powerful tool for expanding human capability” and that the “fear and anxiety” around the technology is “justified.”
“I empathize with anti-technology sentiments and clearly technology isn’t always good for everyone. But overall, I believe technological progress can make the future unbelievably good, for your family and mine,” he wrote.
Altman added, “While we have that debate, we should de-escalate the rhetoric and tactics and try to have fewer explosions in fewer homes, figuratively and literally.”
