Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by SXX on Saturday May 18, 2024 @04:05AM
(#40397255)
This is not much worse than "forced arbitration". In US you can literally lose your rights by clicking on "Agree" button.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by borski on Saturday May 18, 2024 @04:22AM
(#40397321)
It’s all about freedom from government tyranny and censorship. Freedom from corporate tyranny is another matter entirely, and generally relies on individuals being careful about what they agree to.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by bamboozled on Saturday May 18, 2024 @04:55AM
(#40397481)
America values money just as much as it values freedom. If there is any chance the money collection activities will be disturbed, then heads will roll, violently.
See the assassination attempts on president Jackson.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by a_victorp on Saturday May 18, 2024 @10:02PM
(#40403590)
Nah, it values money more
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by dizhn on Sunday May 19, 2024 @06:07AM
(#40405758)
Freedom is good for business.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by hnfong on Sunday May 19, 2024 @09:48AM
(#40406948)
"Freedom" has historically always been mostly about the freedom to make (and lose) money.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by sleight42 on Saturday May 18, 2024 @11:47AM
(#40399950)
And yet there was such a to-do about Twitter "censorship" that Elon made it is his mission to bring freedumb to Twitter.
Though I suppose this is another corporate (really, plutocratic) tyranny.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by loceng on Saturday May 18, 2024 @03:12PM
(#40401265)
Problematic when fascism forms as recently has been evident by social media working with government to censor citizens; fascism being authoritarian politicians working with industrial complexes to benefit each other.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by DaSHacka on Saturday May 18, 2024 @07:22AM
(#40398050)
As others have mentioned, its likely many parts of this NDA are non-enforceable
Its quite common for companies to put tons of extremely restrictive terms in an NDA they can't actually legally enforce to scare off potential future ex-employees from creating a problem.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by fastball on Saturday May 18, 2024 @10:51AM
(#40399510)
I wouldn't say that is "quite common". If you throw a bunch of unenforceable clauses into an NDA/non-compete/whatever, that increases the likelihood of the whole thing being thrown out, which is not a can of worms most corporations want to open. So it is actually toeing a delicate balance most of the time, not a "let's throw everything we can into this legal agreement and see what sticks".
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by tcbawo on Saturday May 18, 2024 @01:22PM
(#40400470)
> If you throw a bunch of unenforceable clauses into an NDA/non-compete/whatever, that increases the likelihood of the whole thing being thrown out
I’m not sure that this is true. Any employment contract will have a partial invalidity/severability clause which will preserve the contract if individual clauses are unenforceable.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by hansvm on Sunday May 19, 2024 @10:23PM
(#40411529)
The severability clause is itself on the table for being stricken, and it's much more likely to happen if too many of the wrong parts of the contract would otherwise invoke it.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by ryanmcgarvey on Saturday May 18, 2024 @09:51AM
(#40399082)
In America you're free to sign or not sign terrible contracts in exchange for life altering amounts of money.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by sundalia on Saturday May 18, 2024 @11:07AM
(#40399641)
How is it serious if money is the motor of freedom of speech? The suing culture in the US ensures freedom of speech up until you bother someone with money.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by sleight42 on Saturday May 18, 2024 @11:50AM
(#40399962)
Change that to "bother someone with more money than you."
Essentially your point.
In the US, the wealthiest have most of the freedom. The rest of us, who can be sued/fired/blackballed, are, by degrees, merely serfs.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by danielmarkbruce on Saturday May 18, 2024 @02:46PM
(#40401079)
In the US, anyone can sue. You can learn how. It's not rocket science.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by p1esk on Saturday May 18, 2024 @04:16PM
(#40401739)
Yes, you can learn how to sue. You can learn how to be a doctor too. You can also learn rocket science. The third one is the easiest to me, personally.
Re:OpenAI requires NDA for employees to keep equity
by danielmarkbruce on Saturday May 18, 2024 @04:20PM
(#40401768)
If you can learn rocket science in x years, you can learn how to sue in x days. So, do both.
I find it hard to understand that in a country that tends to take freedom of expression so seriously (and I say this unironically, American democracy may have flaws but that is definitely a strength) it can be legal to silence someone for the rest of their life.