Helen Toner
Australian-born AI policy researcher and interim executive director of Georgetown's Center for Security and Emerging Technology, who as an independent OpenAI board member voted to remove Sam Altman as CEO in November 2023 and later testified as a trial witness in Musk v. OpenAI.
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- Location
- Washington, D.C., United States
- Country
- United States
- Background
- Australian; raised and educated in Melbourne before relocating to the United States in 2015
- Education
- BSc in Chemical Engineering and a Diploma in Languages, University of Melbourne; MA in Security Studies, Georgetown University
- Current role
- Interim Executive Director, Georgetown University's Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET), since September 2, 2025stated by the subject
- Prior CSET role
- Director of Strategy and Foundational Research Grants
- Earlier career
- Senior research analyst at Open Philanthropy; research affiliate at Oxford University's Centre for the Governance of AI, based in Beijing, studying China's AI ecosystem
- OpenAI board tenure
- Independent director, September 8, 2021 – November 2023
Overview
Helen Toner is an Australian-born artificial intelligence policy researcher. Raised and educated in Melbourne, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and a diploma in languages from the University of Melbourne, she relocated to the United States in 2015 and later earned a master’s degree in security studies from Georgetown University (Forbes Australia; CSET). She is best known for two things: as an independent member of OpenAI’s board from 2021 to 2023, she was one of the board members who voted to remove Sam Altman as chief executive in November 2023, and she later gave a detailed public account of the board’s reasoning (Fox Business; Fox Business, May 2024).
Career and CSET
Before moving into AI policy work full-time, Toner worked as a senior research analyst at Open Philanthropy, advising policymakers and grantmakers on AI strategy, and spent time in Beijing as a research affiliate at Oxford University’s Centre for the Governance of AI, studying China’s AI ecosystem (Fox Business; Forbes Australia). Sources read for this profile do not agree on the precise order of these roles relative to her Georgetown degree; see “What this profile does not claim.”
Toner has been at Georgetown’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) since its founding in 2019, most recently as Director of Strategy and Foundational Research Grants (CSET). In October 2023, she co-authored a CSET report with Andrew Imbrie and Owen Daniels, “Decoding Intentions: Artificial Intelligence and Costly Signals,” examining how governments and companies can credibly signal their intentions around AI development (CSET). On August 26, 2025, CSET announced Toner as its interim executive director, succeeding Dewey Murdick, effective September 2, 2025 (CSET).
OpenAI board tenure and the November 2023 crisis
OpenAI announced Toner’s appointment to its board on September 8, 2021, with Altman saying she “brings an understanding of the global AI landscape with an emphasis on safety” (OpenAI). On November 17, 2023, OpenAI’s board removed Altman as CEO. Toner later said on the TED AI Show that the board numbered four voting members at the time and that “all four of us who fired him came to the conclusion that we just couldn’t believe things that Sam was telling us” (TED AI Show transcript). When OpenAI reinstated Altman on November 21, 2023, its new board consisted of Bret Taylor, Larry Summers, and returning member Adam D’Angelo — Toner was not retained (Fortune). Her departure from the board was publicly confirmed in the following days, in late November 2023 (Yahoo Finance).
On December 7, 2023, Toner told Fortune that an OpenAI lawyer had warned her that pursuing Altman’s removal could cause “the company’s downfall” and that she would breach her fiduciary duty if she did not resign immediately; she said the board’s decision was about its ability to supervise the company, not primarily about AI safety, adding, “our goal in firing Sam was to strengthen OpenAI and make it more able to achieve its mission” (Fortune).
The 2024 public account
In May 2024, Toner gave the most detailed public account of the board’s reasoning. On May 26–27, she and fellow former board member Tasha McCauley published an op-ed in The Economist alleging that senior OpenAI leaders had described a “toxic culture of lying” at the company and conduct that could be “characterised as psychological abuse” (Capital Brief). Days later, on the TED AI Show, Toner said the board first learned OpenAI had launched ChatGPT “on Twitter” rather than being informed in advance, that Altman had not disclosed his personal ownership of the OpenAI Startup Fund while describing himself as an independent board member, and that he had given the board “inaccurate information about the small number of formal safety processes” the company had (Fox Business; TED AI Show transcript).
Toner also connected the firing to her own report: after CSET published “Decoding Intentions,” which Altman reportedly perceived as critical of OpenAI’s safety approach relative to a rival lab, she said Altman “started lying to other board members in order to try and push me off the board” (The Register). In the same interview, discussing an unrelated, earlier episode — Altman’s 2019 departure from Y Combinator — Toner said the real reasons for that departure were “hushed up at the time”; this quote concerns the 2019 Y Combinator exit specifically, not the 2023 OpenAI board decision (TED AI Show transcript).
OpenAI responded to Toner’s May 2024 statements by saying it was “disappointed that Miss Toner continues to revisit these issues,” and pointed to an internal review it said had concluded that the prior board’s decision “was not based on concerns regarding product safety or security, the pace of development, OpenAI’s finances, or its statements to investors, customers, or business partners” (Fortune). This profile states both Toner’s account and OpenAI’s response without adjudicating between them.
After leaving OpenAI’s board, Toner continued her CSET research, telling Axios in June 2024 that AI risk analysis should look beyond narrow catastrophic scenarios to a broader range of “civilization-scale bad outcomes,” and that the technology’s development remained too opaque, “being developed and pushed forward by a very small group of people” (Axios).
Musk v. OpenAI trial testimony
Toner was a witness in the federal trial of Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI, Altman, and Microsoft, which began April 27, 2026, in Oakland, California (Local News Matters). PBS NewsHour reported that the roughly three-week trial included testimony from Musk, Altman, Greg Brockman, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, and “several witnesses including two ex-board members, Helen Toner and Tasha McCauley,” who “said there were concerns about Altman’s truthfulness.” On May 18, 2026, a jury unanimously dismissed all of Musk’s claims, finding he had waited too long to sue (PBS NewsHour).
What this profile does not claim
This profile does not state Toner’s date or place of birth; no independently verified source read for it gives either. It does not resolve the discrepancy between sources on the sequence of her Open Philanthropy role, her Beijing-based research fellowship, and her Georgetown master’s degree. It states her current CSET title as “interim executive director” on the strength of CSET’s own dated August 2025 announcement, while noting that some of CSET’s own later-dated pages describe her simply as “Executive Director” — no source read for this profile confirms whether the “interim” qualifier has since been formally dropped. It does not give a more precise date for her OpenAI board departure than “late November 2023.” It does not detail the specific content of Toner’s own testimony at the 2026 Musk v. OpenAI trial beyond PBS NewsHour’s characterization. Most importantly, this profile does not adjudicate the accuracy of Toner’s public allegations about Sam Altman’s conduct — that he withheld information, misrepresented safety processes, concealed a financial interest, or retaliated against her — nor OpenAI’s countervailing statement that an internal review found the board’s decision unrelated to safety, finances, or the pace of development; both are reported as documented public positions, not resolved as fact.
Timeline
- 2014
- Earns a BSc in Chemical Engineering from the University of Melbourne.
- 2019
- Is described by CSET as having been "instrumental" at the center since its founding this year, as Director of Strategy and Foundational Research Grants.
- 2021-09-08
- Joins OpenAI's board of directors as an independent director.
- 2023-10
- Co-authors the CSET report "Decoding Intentions: Artificial Intelligence and Costly Signals" with Andrew Imbrie and Owen Daniels.
- 2023-11-17
- OpenAI's board, which Toner says numbered four voting members including herself, removes Sam Altman as CEO.
- 2023-11-21
- OpenAI reinstates Altman under a reconstituted board of Bret Taylor, Larry Summers and returning member Adam D'Angelo; Toner is not among them.
- 2023-11-late
- Toner's departure from OpenAI's board is publicly confirmed, days after the board's reconstitution.
- 2023-12-07
- Tells Fortune an OpenAI lawyer warned her that pursuing Altman's removal could cause "the company's downfall" and breach her fiduciary duty; says the board's goal "was to strengthen OpenAI."
- 2024-05-26
- Publishes an op-ed with Tasha McCauley in The Economist alleging senior OpenAI leaders described a "toxic culture of lying" and conduct that could be "characterised as psychological abuse."
- 2024-05-28
- Gives a detailed account of Altman's removal on the TED AI Show, including that the board first learned of ChatGPT's launch on Twitter, that Altman did not disclose his ownership of the OpenAI Startup Fund, and that he "started lying to other board members" to try to remove her after her co-authored paper was published.
- 2025-08-26
- CSET announces Toner as interim executive director, succeeding Dewey Murdick, effective September 2, 2025.
- 2026-04-27
- The roughly three-week federal trial of Elon Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI, Sam Altman and Microsoft begins in Oakland, California.
- 2026-05-18
- A jury dismisses all of Musk's claims as filed too late. Toner testified among "several witnesses" who, per PBS NewsHour, described concerns about Altman's truthfulness.
What we could not verify
These claims came up in research and could not be confirmed. They are recorded here rather than published as fact or quietly dropped. If you hold a source that settles one, please tell us.
- No independently verified birth date or birthplace was located; none is stated.
- Sources disagree on the sequence of Toner's early career: CSET's own biography and Fox Business list her Open Philanthropy role and her Beijing-based research-affiliate stint without dating either precisely relative to her Georgetown master's degree, while Forbes Australia's account places the Beijing stint after she completed her Georgetown studies. This profile does not resolve the exact order.
- CSET's own current staff and Georgetown program pages describe Toner's title simply as "Executive Director," while CSET's own August 2025 announcement named her "interim executive director." No source read for this profile confirms whether "interim" has since been formally dropped; this profile uses "interim" per the more specific, dated announcement.
- The exact date in late November 2023 that Toner's OpenAI board departure became final is not pinned down by an independent source read for this profile beyond "late November 2023"; this profile does not state a more precise date.
- No source read for this profile gives further detail on the specific content of Toner's testimony at the 2026 Musk v. OpenAI trial beyond PBS NewsHour's characterization that she and Tasha McCauley "said there were concerns about Altman's truthfulness."
- This profile does not adjudicate the accuracy of Toner's claims about Altman's conduct (withholding information, undisclosed financial interest, retaliation) or of OpenAI's characterization of an internal review; it states both sides' public positions without resolving between them.
Sources
18 sources (7 tier 1, 6 tier 2, 5 first-party), each opened and read against the claim it supports. Statements the subject makes about itself are marked as such and are not treated as independent evidence. See the source policy.
Every source below was independently fetched and read for this profile. Biographical facts (education, CSET titles, board-join date) rest substantially on Georgetown/CSET's and OpenAI's own first-party materials, but each is corroborated by at least one independent tier1 or tier2 outlet also read for this profile (Forbes Australia; Fox Business). Claims about what Toner has said regarding Sam Altman's conduct are reported as her own documented public statements, not adopted as established fact; OpenAI's response to those statements is also included. This profile does not use any Wikipedia page as a source.
- Federal court rejects Elon Musk's claims against OpenAI, saying he filed his lawsuit too late Supports: Confirming the trial's witnesses by name (Musk, Altman, Brockman, Nadella, Toner, McCauley), the May 18, 2026 jury verdict dismissing Musk's claims as filed too late, and the direct characterization that Toner and McCauley "said there were concerns about Altman's truthfulness."
- Meet OpenAI's board of directors that ousted Sam Altman Supports: Independent confirmation of Toner's CSET role (director of strategy and foundational research grants, five years at the center as of 2023), her prior roles at Open Philanthropy and as an Oxford research affiliate studying China's AI sector, and her status as an independent OpenAI board director.
- Former OpenAI board says Sam Altman lied to the board and ousted as a result Supports: Toner's TED AI Show account that the board learned of ChatGPT's launch on Twitter, that Altman gave inaccurate information about safety processes and did not disclose his ownership of the OpenAI Startup Fund, and the show's name and May 2024 timing.
- Sam Altman returns as OpenAI CEO with a new board of Bret Taylor, Larry Summers, and Adam D'Angelo Supports: Confirming the composition of OpenAI's reconstituted board announced November 21, 2023 (Bret Taylor, Larry Summers, and returning member Adam D'Angelo), used to establish that Toner was not retained.
- Helen Toner, OpenAI board member, speaks out on Sam Altman intimidation claims Supports: Toner's account that an OpenAI lawyer told her the board's decision could cause "the company's downfall" and breach her fiduciary duty if she did not resign, and her quote that "our goal in firing Sam was to strengthen OpenAI and make it more able to achieve its mission."
- Sam Altman's reputation takes another hit as Helen Toner details his OpenAI ouster Supports: OpenAI's own response to Toner's TED AI Show allegations — that the company was "disappointed that Miss Toner continues to revisit these issues" and that an independent review found the prior board's decision "was not based on concerns regarding product safety or security, the pace of development, OpenAI's finances, or its statements to investors, customers, or business partners."
- Helen Toner — Skynet isn't the only AI nightmare Supports: Toner's continued role and views as CSET director of strategy after leaving OpenAI's board, including her direct quotes on broadening AI risk analysis beyond narrow catastrophic scenarios and on transparency in how AI is developed.
- Musk v. Altman — Day 1: Jury selected as blockbuster OpenAI trial begins in Oakland Supports: Confirming the trial's April 27, 2026 start date in Oakland, California.
- Meet Helen Toner — The Aussie holding OpenAI's Altman to account Supports: Toner's Australian upbringing and Melbourne education (chemical engineering degree, 2014), her 2015 relocation to the United States, her Beijing-based research affiliate year at Oxford's Centre for the Governance of AI, her CSET role, her OpenAI board appointment, and her role among the board members who voted to remove Altman.
- What really went down at OpenAI and the future of regulation w/ Helen Toner (Transcript) Supports: Direct transcript confirmation of Toner's quotes: that the board learned about ChatGPT "on Twitter," that Altman "gave us inaccurate information about the small number of formal safety processes," that "all four of us who fired him came to the conclusion that we just couldn't believe things that Sam was telling us," and — critically — that her quote about the real reasons being "hushed up at the time" refers specifically to Altman's earlier departure from Y Combinator, not to the 2023 OpenAI board decision.
- Ex-OpenAI board members accuse Sam Altman of a 'toxic culture of lying' Supports: Corroborating Toner's TED AI Show allegations against Altman, and identifying the title of her co-authored CSET paper ("Decoding Intentions") and her account that Altman "started lying to other board members in order to push me off the board" after its publication.
- OpenAI ditched the only 2 women on its board. So far, it's replacing them with men. Supports: Confirming Toner and Tasha McCauley left OpenAI's board in late November 2023 after Altman's reinstatement, and that Toner had written a paper Altman perceived as critical of OpenAI's approach to AI safety.
- OpenAI's former Australian board member claims 'toxic culture of lying' was behind Sam Altman firing Supports: Confirming Toner's Australian background, and the May 27, 2024 Economist op-ed she co-wrote with Tasha McCauley describing a "toxic culture of lying" and conduct that "can be characterised as psychological abuse."
- Decoding Intentions — Center for Security and Emerging Technology Supports: The exact title ("Decoding Intentions: Artificial Intelligence and Costly Signals"), publication month, and co-authors (Andrew Imbrie, Owen Daniels and Helen Toner) of the CSET report.
- Helen Toner joins OpenAI's board of directors Supports: The September 8, 2021 date Toner joined OpenAI's board, her then-current CSET title, and Sam Altman's quoted statement on her appointment.
- Helen Toner Named Interim Executive Director Supports: Toner's appointment as interim executive director effective September 2, 2025, succeeding Dewey Murdick, her prior title (Director of Strategy and Foundational Research Grants), and her having been at CSET since its 2019 founding.
- Helen Toner Supports: Current-role description and educational background (MA in Security Studies from Georgetown; BSc in Chemical Engineering and a Diploma in Languages from the University of Melbourne).
- Helen Toner Supports: Corroborating detail that Toner spent roughly nine months in Beijing as an Oxford Centre for the Governance of AI research affiliate, and her lead co-authorship of the CSET/Georgetown report "The Malicious Use of Artificial Intelligence."
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