A coalition of more than a dozen organizations staged a protest at the entrance to OpenAI’s DevDay conference at San Francisco’s Fort Mason on Tuesday. Participating groups included Bay Resistance, Tech Workers Coalition, Service Employees International Union, San Francisco Rising, and the San Francisco Labor Council.
Demonstrators carried signs and chanted slogans directed at OpenAI leadership, with messaging focused on three primary areas of concern: the company’s contracts with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the environmental impact of data centers, and what protesters characterized as excessive power concentration within the artificial intelligence industry. Visual displays included large orange signage reading “Drop the ICE contract” and cardboard robot costumes holding cardboard scythes. Specific chants included references to genocide, ICE activities, and calls for democratic accountability.
The protest reflects broader concerns about AI development and governance that have mobilized multiple constituencies. Protest organizers distributed materials directing supporters toward QuitGPT, an organization that has organized boycotts against major AI companies. The flyers connected OpenAI’s contracts and leadership to broader political concerns, alleging connections between the company’s operations and political activities.
Protest organizers announced plans to remain at the venue until OpenAI CEO Sam Altman arrived for the opening keynote address. The demonstration included direct appeals to OpenAI employees, with protest leaders delivering messages encouraging workforce departures from the company. The event drew responses including booing when Altman’s name was mentioned among the gathered crowd.
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