A watchdog group has called on the Defense Department’s Inspector General office to probe whether the recent commissioning of four tech executives as part-time Army officers is in keeping with laws and practices against self-dealing.
The Democracy Defenders Fund sent the letter on Tuesday, requesting that investigators determine “whether the assignment of these officials to the Army Reserve is consistent with the Federal conflict of interest laws” and whether their appointments qualify as “misuse of position and nonpublic information.”
The executives — Shyam Sankar, chief technology officer of Palantir; Andrew Bosworth, chief technology officer of Meta; Kevin Weil, chief product officer at OpenAI; and Bob McGrew, an advisor at Thinking Machines Lab who was the chief research officer for OpenAI — joined the Army Reserve just weeks ago. The men will forego traditional three-month boot camp for a two-week crash course on Army history and basic military knowledge.
These executives may be in a position to influence Army and Defense Department contracts as newly minted lieutenant colonels or share vital inside information to benefit their companies, which could increase the value of compensation like stock options.
It is not unusual for civilians with expertise to bypass the most junior officer ranks for mid-level appointments. Historically that has most often included chaplains, veterinarians, and medical providers, career fields that require advanced degrees to join. The Army has made efforts to recruit more Americans with cyber and tech experience, though the four executives are the highest-profile enlistments to date.
The Democracy Defenders Fund outlined special concerns regarding ongoing contract work Palantir and OpenAI have undertaken with the DoD recently.
It’s common for military reservists to have civilian careers in the DoD. The problem with these tech execs, the group says, are the profound amounts of lucrative government contracts at stake for their companies.
Sgt. Dustin D. Biven/US Army
“Some of these individuals have significant personal financial stakes in their outside employers, including stock, stock options, restricted stock units, and performance-based bonuses, which they seem unlikely to divest for a part-time government position,” the letter read.
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“Given the ongoing and clear financial interest these appointees have in the adoption of Artificial Intelligence by the Department of Defense, there is a real risk that these individuals may engage in self-dealing or use their positions or nonpublic government information to benefit their outside employers in violation of federal law,” it continued.
The executives’ commissions are part of a larger Army effort to rapidly modernize to better harness Silicon Valley’s tech for future battlefields. Some experts have previously noted that the expertise such executives have is likely to be an imperative for future peer-level conflicts.
Business Insider asked Army officials if concerns regarding executives’ potential conflicts of interest have already been addressed, but did not receive a response before Tuesday afternoon. Officials have previously said the executives will be held to the same ethical standard as other service members.
“Palantir, Meta, OpenAI, and Thinking Machines each have a significant financial interest in DoD adopting AI,” the letter read, adding that the DoD has already awarded over $1 billion worth of contracts to Palantir and its subsidiaries while OpenAI has a $200 million AI contract with the military.
