“Our business model means safety, security, and progress are all insulated from short-term commercial pressures,” the announcement reads. “This way, we can scale in peace.” In addition to Sutskever, SSI is co-founded by Daniel Gross, a former AI lead at Apple, and Daniel Levy, who previously worked as a member of technical staff at OpenAI.

Last year, Sutskever led the push to oust OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Sutskever left OpenAI in May and hinted at the start of a new project. Shortly after Sutskever’s departure, AI researcher Jan Leike announced his resignation from OpenAI, citing safety processes that have “taken a backseat to shiny products.” Gretchen Krueger, a policy researcher at OpenAI, also mentioned safety concerns when announcing her departure.

As OpenAI pushes forward with partnerships with Apple and Microsoft, we likely won’t see SSI doing that anytime soon. During an interview with Bloomberg, Sutskever says SSI’s first product will be safe superintelligence, and the company “will not do anything else” until then.