Edward Snowden has slammed OpenAI for appointing former Retired U.S. Army General Paul M. Nakasone, a former NSA director, to its board.

OpenAI announced Nakasone’s appointment last week, saying the general’s long history in the cybersecurity field would help the company facing new and ever-increasing cybersecurity threats.

“Artificial Intelligence has the potential to have huge positive impacts on people’s lives, but it can only meet this potential if these innovations are securely built and deployed,“ Bret Taylor, Chair of OpenAI’s Board, said at the time. “General Nakasone’s unparalleled experience in areas like cybersecurity will help guide OpenAI in achieving its mission of ensuring artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity.”

Critics immediately raised concerns about Nakasone’s appointment, especially in light of the NSA’s long history of surveilling Americans, with Snowden being one of those who pointed out the danger.

Professor Matthew Green, who teaches cryptography at Johns Hopkins University, also tweeted his concerns.

Green goes on to make the point that companies may have over-estimated consumer interest in LLMs and their willingness to pay for them, leaving law enforcement and the military as the likely benefactors.

The concerns raised by Green and Snowden tap into the fundamental issues with current AI models and the vast amount of data they consume. At some point, questions arise about what that data will be used for and who will be using it.

Snowden and Green clearly believe OpenAI is signaling its intentions for the future.