What happened
OpenAI terminated an employee for using confidential company information on prediction market platforms like Polymarket, per an internal message. Spokesperson Kayla Wood confirmed company policy prohibits using confidential data for personal gain. Financial data platform Unusual Whales identified 77 suspicious positions across 60 Polymarket wallet addresses since March 2023. These linked to OpenAI events: Sora, GPT-5 releases, and Sam Altman's employment status. One wallet profited over $16,000 betting on Altman's return two days after his November 2023 ousting.
Why it matters
Insider trading on prediction markets creates compliance and security risks for technology companies. Procurement teams face increased scrutiny over employee access to sensitive product roadmaps; security architects must consider new information leakage vectors. Companies face a growing challenge monitoring and enforcing policies against illicit trading on platforms where market outcomes link to internal corporate events. This follows Kalshi reporting suspicious insider trading cases to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, resulting in fines and bans.
Subscribe for Weekly Updates
Stay ahead with our weekly AI and tech briefings, delivered every Tuesday.
