At the Vanity Fair Oscar party, playwright Jeremy O. Harris confronted OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in a heated exchange over the company's Pentagon contract. The confrontation, which lasted 10-15 minutes, occurred as stars like Al Pacino and Larry David mingled at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art's new wing. Harris accused Altman of enabling global violence by allowing OpenAI's technology to be used for classified military purposes.

Harris, known for his Tony-nominated play "Slave Play," told Altman he couldn't understand how he could "comfortably look at yourself in the mirror" after partnering with the Department of War, which he said had recently killed 175 people. The playwright argued that OpenAI's technology was already harming children and contributing to societal dangers. This public rebuke came amid growing tensions in the AI industry, as Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei had recently refused similar Pentagon requests and was now suing the government over national security designations.

Harris's confrontation drew attention at the star-studded event, though he expressed disappointment that more attendees didn't challenge tech executives like Jeff Bezos and Altman. He compared his actions to Eartha Kitt's 1968 White House protest against the Vietnam War, suggesting that Silicon Valley leaders should feel unwelcome in cultural spaces. The incident highlights increasing scrutiny of AI companies' military partnerships and the ethical concerns surrounding advanced technology's role in warfare and surveillance.