--- title: "Protesters Arrested After Storming OpenAI Lobbying Office" description: "Some 13 students were hauled out of OpenAI's Washington DC office on Monday, ending a two-hour occupation protesting AI." date: "2026-08-11" modified: "2026-08-11" authors: - name: "Joe Wilkins" job_title: "Correspondent" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jwilkins" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/protesters-arrested-protest-openai-washington-dc" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Ethics" - "OpenAI" --- # Protesters Arrested After Storming OpenAI Lobbying Office ![Photos show protesters being arrested at a protest against ChatGPT maker OpenAI.]() *Earl Aguila* Over 30 student activists came together on Monday afternoon to occupy the Gallup Building in Washington DC, home to a public-facing lobbying office belonging to ChatGPT developer OpenAI. Once inside the lobby, the demonstrators unfurled a massive banner reading "Stop Stealing Our Future," while others held signs with messages like "OpenAI bought my Senator." The demonstration lasted two hours, and ended when police stormed the lobby, arresting 13 protestors. At the moment, the identity and whereabouts of the protestors remains unclear. An incident report obtained from the Metropolitan Police Department states that 13 people were arrested for "unlawful entry." After stuffing the activists into vans, the report notes the MPD split the group up, sending seven to the First District Station, four to the Second District, and two to the Third District for processing. ![A group of protesters are holding signs that say "OpenAI bought my senator" and unfurling a banner that says "stop stealing our futures"]() The protest was organized by the climate group Sunrise Movement and anti-AI organization QuitGPT. According to a joint statement shared with *Futurism*, Monday's action is just one of many across over 20 states in August calling on politicians to "Dump Big Tech." One student organizer who attended the protest, Raya Gupta, explained in the statement that "my friends chose to risk arrest to bring the fight to OpenAI." "Our generation doesn't have any guarantees about whether we'll have jobs after college, or whether there will be clean drinking water for all of us or whether people will have any power left in politics since our elections keep getting bought by Big Tech," Gupta continued. "We all believe that not taking action now, as the scales slide between the people and the billionaires, puts our future in great jeopardy." ![A protester holds a sign that says "OpenAI bought my senator"]() Gupta's comments underscore the degree to which AI has become an [omni-cause]() for Americans across the political spectrum. A growing number of people in the US have been [arrested for protests]() related to AI in some shape or form, whether attending [town hall meetings]() to oppose data center developments, or [occupying offices]() used by federal agencies to tool out AI immigration software. Despite growing disgust with AI and its developers, politicians on both sides of the aisle have roundly embraced the tech industry's extremely expensive lobbying efforts. Case in point, the recent opening of [OpenAI's DC Office]() comes as one of the AI lab's super PACs injects over [$140 million]() into the coming midterm elections, in a blatant attempt to steer AI regulations at the highest level. *Updated with new information from the MPD.* **More on AI protests:** *[Climate Activists Pelt Microsoft Data Center With Balloons Full of Acid]()* ## Author At Futurism, I focus on the intersection of technology and power — examining the economics, history, and politics behind today’s dystopian headlines. As a writer, I’m interested in topics ranging from AI’s impact on labor to startups nobody asked for. My prior work includes bylines in Jacobin, Verso, and Blue Labyrinths. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Forbes, The Guardian, MIT Technology Review, Time, The Nation, Mother Jones, The Verge, and Wired. I grew up in Michigan, attending Central Michigan University as well as Ball State University, where I earned a master of music. I now live in Brooklyn with my girlfriend and our cat Ziti. On weekends, you can find me hunched over a cold pint arguing geopolitics with the other transplants. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()