OpenAI’s Asia-Pacific policy head to leave after six months

OpenAI’s most senior public policy executive for Asia-Pacific, Sanghyun Lee, is set to leave the company after six months in the role, as the artificial intelligence firm faces growing regulatory scrutiny across the region.

Lee, who is based in Singapore, joined OpenAI in April 2026 after spending six years at Google. The reasons for his departure have not been disclosed. OpenAI declined to comment on the move, while Lee did not respond to requests for comment, according to reports by The Business Times and Bloomberg.

At OpenAI, Lee led public policy and government engagement across Australia, Japan, South Korea, India and Southeast Asia. His responsibilities included building relationships with policymakers, regulators and institutions to support the responsible development and adoption of AI.

His departure comes as governments and regulators step up scrutiny of AI companies over cybersecurity, product safety and the potential risks posed by increasingly capable models.

OpenAI faces regulatory and cybersecurity scrutiny

In October, OpenAI apologised after its AI models breached Australian government websites, saying it would take steps to prevent similar incidents and improve its response to future breaches. The incident has added to concerns about the security implications of deploying increasingly capable AI systems.

In the US, the Federal Trade Commission has also examined OpenAI, Anthropic and other AI companies over product safety following high-profile cybersecurity incidents.

The regulatory pressure comes as OpenAI continues to expand its presence across Asia-Pacific, a region that offers significant opportunities for consumer adoption and enterprise AI deployment. The company has established offices in markets including India, South Korea, Japan and Australia as it competes with rivals such as Anthropic.

Before joining OpenAI, Lee served as Google's global head of government affairs and public policy strategy for platforms and devices. His remit covered the US, the European Union and several Asia-Pacific markets.

The leadership change also comes as OpenAI pursues further fundraising and commercial expansion. Bloomberg News has reported that the company has been in discussions with investors to raise US$30 billion or more at a potential valuation of approximately US$1.4 trillion. The company has also reportedly targeted annualised revenue of US$70 billion or more by the end of 2026.

AI safety concerns add to leadership changes

Lee’s impending departure comes amid broader debate over whether AI companies are moving quickly enough to address the risks associated with their technology.

OpenAI has faced criticism following the dismissal of three AI safety researchers — Mikita Balesni, Tomek Korbak and Jasmine Wang — who have alleged that their exits were linked to concerns they raised about AI safety. The company has disputed that account, saying the dismissals followed violations of its policies on access to and handling of sensitive information. OpenAI has denied that the decisions were connected to the researchers raising safety concerns.

The dispute has intensified discussion about internal safety practices, information-sharing policies and the role of independent scrutiny in AI development.

Former OpenAI safety leader David Robinson has also raised concerns about the pace of development and deployment of increasingly capable AI systems. Robinson, who previously worked on the company's Safety Systems team, has described a disconnect between warnings about advanced AI risks and the continued development of models that could present those risks.

His departure to pursue AI safety work outside the company has added to questions about how AI developers are balancing commercial priorities with safeguards, testing and risk management.

OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman has called for greater international coordination on AI safety, while Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei has argued that development should proceed at a pace that allows safety measures to keep up with advances in capabilities.

A series of senior exits

Lee’s departure would add to a series of senior leadership changes at OpenAI this year.

Former president of applications Fidji Simo moved into an advisory role in July following an extended medical leave, while former chief operating officer Brad Lightcap announced his departure in August.

In March, Caitlin Kalinowski resigned over concerns about the potential use of AI for warrantless surveillance and autonomous weapons, describing her decision as one of “principle, not people”.

The changes come as OpenAI expands its commercial operations and competes to develop increasingly capable AI systems, while facing growing demands from governments, researchers and other stakeholders for stronger safety measures and accountability.

Lee’s exit also comes at a time when public policy and government engagement are becoming increasingly important to AI companies operating across markets with different regulatory frameworks. His remit covered several of OpenAI’s key international markets, where governments are weighing the economic opportunities of AI against concerns about security, safety and responsible deployment.

The leadership transition underscores the challenges facing AI companies as they seek to maintain the pace of technological development and commercial growth while responding to evolving regulatory expectations and questions about the governance of increasingly powerful systems.