The 20-year-old man accused of throwing a molotov cocktail at Sam Altman’s house appears to have been motivated by fears that AI would lead to humanity’s extinction.
On Monday, the Justice Department formally identified and charged the suspect, Daniel Moreno-Gama from Texas, after he allegedly threw the molotov cocktail and threatened to burn down OpenAI’s office in San Francisco.
As evidence, federal officials released stills from surveillance footage that seem to show Moreno-Gama throwing the molotov cocktail outside Altman’s house in San Francisco last Friday morning, and then trying to enter OpenAI’s offices.
“Moreno-Gama attempted to break the glass doors of the building with a chair and stated that he had come to burn down the location and kill anyone inside,” the Justice Department added. When San Francisco police arrived at the scene, they also found the 20-year-old suspect with a “jug of kerosene, a blue lighter and a document,” an apparent manifesto.
(DOJ)
(DOJ)
“The first part of the document, entitled ‘Your Last Warning’ by Daniel Moreno-Gama, advocated against AI and for the killing and commission of other crimes against CEOs of AI companies and their investors, listing names and addresses that purported to belong to multiple CEOs and investors,” the Justice Department added. “In the document, Moreno-Gama admitted to attempting to kill the victim CEO and requested others to join his movement.”
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Moreno-Gama also emailed the same document to people at his former college in Texas. The 10-page criminal complaint adds that the document was a three-part series. The second part was titled “Some more words on the matter of our impending extinction,” where he discusses the danger AI poses to humanity.
The third part of the document seems to be addressed to OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman. The complaint notes: “‘To [Victim-1’s name] if you make it’ in which MORENO-GAMA states ‘If by some miracle you live, then I would take this as a sign from the divine to redeem yourself…’”
(DOJ)
Although Moreno-Gama allegedly only damaged property, US attorney Craig Missakian said, “if the evidence shows that Mr. Moreno-Gama executed these attacks to change public policy or to coerce government and other officials, we will treat this as an act of domestic terrorism and together with our law enforcement partners prosecute him to the fullest extent allowed by law.”
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Moreno-Gama now faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for damage and destruction of property by means of explosives and a maximum sentence of 10 years for possession of an unregistered firearm.
Altman himself published his own blog post on Friday responding to the incident. “Thankfully it (the molotov cocktail) bounced off the house and no one got hurt,” he wrote.
His blog post also addresses the backlash facing AI. “A lot of the criticism of our industry comes from sincere concern about the incredibly high stakes of this technology. This is quite valid, and we welcome good-faith criticism and debate. I empathize with anti-technology sentiments and clearly technology isn’t always good for everyone. But overall, I believe technological progress can make the future unbelievably good, for your family and mine,” he wrote. “While we have that debate, we should de-escalate the rhetoric and tactics and try to have fewer explosions in fewer homes, figuratively and literally.”
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I’ve been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I’m currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country’s technology sector.
Since 2020, I’ve covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I’ve combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink’s cellular service.
I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. Earlier this year, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.
I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I’m now following how President Trump’s tariffs will affect the industry. I’m always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.
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