Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, stated on Thursday that he felt members of Islamic and Arab communities in the technology industry were uncomfortable sharing their recent experiences, a clear reference to the ongoing impact of the war in Gaza, according to a Reuters report.
Altman wrote on the social media platform, Ex: “Muslim and Arab colleagues (especially Palestinians) in the tech community I’ve spoken to feel uncomfortable about their recent experiences and often don’t speak out of fear of retaliation and harm to their professional prospects.”
The prominent head of the company behind the Microsoft-supported chatbot program ChatGPT urged technology makers to treat members of these communities with empathy.
When asked about his feelings regarding experiences of the Jewish community, Altman replied, “I am Jewish, and I think anti-Semitism is a significant and growing problem in the world. I see many people in our industry supporting me, which I greatly appreciate, and I see much less of that for Muslims.”
Human rights advocates point out a sharp rise in Islamophobia in the United States and elsewhere since October 7th, at the start of the Al-Aqsa intifada. The Israeli attack on Gaza resulted in the deaths of over 22,000 Palestinians, nearly 1% of the population in the Gaza Strip, which has a population of 2.3 million, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) stated last month that in the two months following the start of the war, incidents of Islamophobic and anti-Palestinian and Arab bias increased by 172% in the United States compared to the same period last year.
In December, the Anti-Defamation League reported that incidents of anti-Semitism in the United States increased by 337% between October 7th and December 7th.
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