# OpenAI Launches New Team to Prepare for Catastrophic AI Risks

OpenAI announced the creation of a dedicated Preparedness team focused on preventing catastrophic risks from advanced AI systems. The company is also launching a related challenge to support this safety initiative.

The new team represents a significant organizational shift for OpenAI as AI capabilities rapidly advance. Rather than focusing solely on current AI safety issues, the Preparedness team will specifically address "frontier risks"—potential dangers that could emerge from highly-capable AI systems that don't exist yet.

This move comes as AI labs race to develop increasingly powerful models. OpenAI, creator of ChatGPT and GPT-4, is positioning itself to proactively identify and mitigate worst-case scenarios before they materialize.

The announcement signals growing recognition within the AI industry that today's safety measures may be insufficient for tomorrow's systems. By building specialized infrastructure for catastrophic risk assessment,