Key facts
- OpenAI named Dan Driscoll senior counselor for national security modernization, a newly created position.
- Driscoll will advise OpenAI leadership and work with outside partners on AI for national security and cybersecurity.
- Driscoll resigned as Army secretary earlier in 2026 after months of tension with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
- OpenAI said Driscoll will help internal teams understand the operational needs of global national security organizations.
OpenAI appointed Dan Driscoll, a former US Secretary of the Army, to a newly created role focused on national security modernization, the AI startup said on Monday, in a report dated November 2.
Driscoll will serve as senior counselor for national security modernization, advising OpenAI's leadership and working with external partners on how advanced AI can support national security and cybersecurity. OpenAI said he will engage government officials, industry leaders and academic institutions to advance what the company calls "democratic AI," and will help internal teams understand the operational needs of global national security organizations.
Driscoll resigned as Army secretary earlier in 2026 after months of tension with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, according to the report. He gained prominence outside the Pentagon when US President Trump tapped him to take part in talks with Moscow and Kyiv to end the war in Ukraine, a rare diplomatic task for an Army secretary.
"I'm joining OpenAI to help the United States and our allies put this technology to work responsibly, for the people who keep us safe," Driscoll said in a statement.