---
title: "OpenAI drops NDAs with public officials for new data center projects"
slug: "openai-drops-ndas-with-public-officials-for-new-data-center-projects"
date: "2026-11-06"
category: "Business & Society"
author: "Simon Banks"
correspondent: "Simon Banks"
correspondentRole: "Labor & Societal Impact Investigator"
readingTimeMinutes: 2
tags: ["News"]
originalSourceUrl: "https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/1028454/openai-data-center-nda"
canonicalUrl: "https://aurav.ae/openai-drops-ndas-with-public-officials-for-new-data-center-projects"
publisher: "Aura-V Intelligence (aurav.ae)"
---

# OpenAI drops NDAs with public officials for new data center projects

> OpenAI will no longer require non-disclosure agreements with government officials on its upcoming compute campuses.

## Key Takeaways (TL;DR)

- OpenAI ends NDAs with public officials for data center projects, limiting confidentiality to security, trade secrets, or competitive info.
- The company commits to covering full electricity costs, publishing job forecasts, and issuing a “local compact” for each compute campus.
- The policy mirrors Amazon’s recent move and follows voter opposition to data-center expansion.

Following this week’s midterms where voters resoundingly voiced their opposition to data center expansion, OpenAI announced new commitments to communities where it is working on data center projects, including that it won’t use non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) with public officials.

OpenAI will not use NDAs with public officials as part of its new data center community commitments. Many data center projects have come under scrutiny for relying on NDAs to hide discussions between developers and local officials. OpenAI says it is now allowing “only narrow protections covering legitimate security information, trade secrets, or proprietary or competitively sensitive information.” In October, Amazon announced it would no longer use NDAs with government agencies it works with on data center projects.

OpenAI’s additional commitments include paying “the full cost” of electricity it uses and the “infrastructure needed to serve us.” It will make opportunities for local communities by publishing the jobs it expects to create and by reporting on hiring. Every future “compute campus” the company owns and operates will have a “local compact” that includes the commitments and will reflect “local priorities,” OpenAI says.

Our read: By eliminating NDAs with officials, OpenAI is forcing greater transparency on a front that has traditionally shielded corporate-government negotiations. The move may pressure peers to adopt similar terms, especially as local stakeholders gain leverage after recent electoral backlash against opaque data-center deals.

---

*Original Think-Tank Source: [OpenAI is stepping back from NDAs for data center projects](https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/1028454/openai-data-center-nda)*