(Bloomberg) — Local and federal prosecutors have filed attempted murder and other criminal charges against a man arrested Friday for allegedly throwing a Molotov cocktail at the home of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
San Francisco County District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said local prosecutors are charging Daniel Moreno-Gama, 20, with attempted murder, attempted arson and possession of a destructive device, among other charges. No one was injured in the attack.
“We interpret this behavior for exactly what it is: an attempt on Mr. Altman’s life and an extreme danger to those around him and those who work for his company,” Jenkins said Monday during a news conference. “My office will prosecute this case to the fullest extent of the law.”
Moreno-Gama’s arraignment in state court was scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Justice has charged Moreno-Gama with possession of an unregistered firearm and attempted damage and destruction of property using explosives, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court in San Francisco.
Law enforcement obtained a document from the man at the time of his arrest that detailed his opposition to artificial intelligence companies and appeared to target various leaders, according to a federal complaint.
The document was divided into three parts. The first was titled “Your Final Warning” and contained a list of the names and addresses of the board members, CEOs, and investors of various AI companies. No identifying information was provided in the complaint.
The second part detailed the author’s views that AI poses a risk to humanity, and the third part was a letter addressed to Altman in case he survived the attack. The complaint contained a short excerpt from the letter: “If by some miracle you are alive, then I would take it as a sign from God to redeem yourself…”
Police said they were called to Altman’s residence in San Francisco early Friday morning after the man threw an incendiary device at the home and caused a fire at the front gate of the property before fleeing on foot. Later that morning, the same individual threatened to burn down the OpenAI headquarters in another part of the city.
The federal criminal complaint filed by the Justice Department does not name Altman or OpenAI, but both have confirmed they were targeted.
Craig Missakian, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California, emphasized that the investigation into the incident is ongoing and the charges against Moreno-Gama may change.
“If the evidence shows that Mr. Moreno-Gama carried out these attacks to change public policy or to coerce government or other officials, we will consider this an act of domestic terrorism,” Missakian said in a statement.
OpenAI, which is gearing up for a massive initial public offering, recently faced protests outside its San Francisco offices after announcing a deal with the Department of Defense in February. Other groups have also protested over concerns about the rapid pace of AI development, job losses and its environmental impact.
In response to the incident, Altman published a blog post in which he wrote that he welcomed legitimate criticism and debate about the “high stakes of this technology.”
“I sympathize with the anti-technology sentiment, and it’s clear that technology isn’t always good for everyone,” Altman wrote. “But overall, I believe that technological advancements can make the future incredibly good, for your family and mine.”
(Update with impeachment plan. An earlier version of the story corrected the spelling of San Francisco.)
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