OpenAI Races to Build Fully Automated AI Researcher by 2028, Starting With an Intern This September
Summary
OpenAI is racing to deploy an autonomous AI research intern by September 2025, with ambitions to build a fully automated AI researcher by 2028, even as major safety and misuse concerns remain unresolved.
Key Points
- OpenAI is pursuing a new grand challenge to build a fully automated AI researcher, with plans to launch an autonomous AI research intern by September 2025 and a complete multi-agent research system by 2028.
- OpenAI chief scientist Jakub Pachocki points to advances in reasoning models and agent-based tools like Codex as early proof that AI systems can increasingly tackle complex, long-running tasks across science, math, and business with minimal human guidance.
- Significant concerns around safety, misuse, and concentrated power remain unresolved, with OpenAI relying on chain-of-thought monitoring to oversee autonomous systems while acknowledging that governments and policymakers must play a major role in setting boundaries.