OpenAI creates a senior counselor role for national security modernization, naming former Army Secretary Dan Driscoll

OpenAI has established a position that did not previously exist, Senior Counselor for National Security Modernization, and announced Dan Driscoll will hold it, advising company leadership and external partners on how advanced AI can strengthen national and cyber security. The role is newly created; OpenAI's prior work in this area appears in its Daybreak program with allies and partners on cyber resilience and protecting essential services, rather than in a dedicated national security counselor position. The appointment comes in a first-party OpenAI announcement that also sets out the role's scope, Driscoll's background and how he will work with company leadership.

Driscoll's work runs between governments, industry, academia and allied institutions, connecting practical modernization initiatives with OpenAI's internal teams. The announcement frames the role as a two-way channel: advancing the build-out of democratic AI externally while helping OpenAI teams understand how global national security institutions operate. The announcement states he will work with OpenAI teams and leaders across governments, industry, academia and allied institutions, and help internal teams understand those institutions' operational needs.

The announcement describes the duties and staffing of a newly created advisory role; readers should treat it as an organizational and policy action rather than a technical result, and it names no specific projects, timelines or deliverables.

The announcement is primarily OpenAI's own account; it does not say how the role's effectiveness will be measured or what the specific modernization initiatives are, and Driscoll's description of the technology's role is his own statement.