A new opinion essay by Harvard Law School professor Jesse M. Fried argues that the mission-first governance structures adopted by OpenAI and Anthropic could backfire on investors and fail to deliver the public benefit they promise, likening the risk to the long-running boardroom struggles at Ben & Jerry's.
Opinion · AI Governance
Prophets Before Profits: The Risk Inside AI's Mission-First Boards
A Harvard Law professor warns that the "unaccountable" mission guardians steering OpenAI and Anthropic could trigger a costly "mission meltdown" — with investors legally subordinated to a stated cause, echoing the long boardroom battles at Ben & Jerry's.
2×
OpenAI's tier structure — a nonprofit parent that can appoint & replace for-profit directors
~26%
Employee ownership stake OpenAI has issued through restructuring
2000
Year Ben & Jerry's kept a mission board after its Unilever sale — the cautionary parallel
Two designs, one common thread: control sits with the mission, not shareholders
OpenAI
Nonprofit Foundation boardchair Bret Taylor · appoints & removes directors
↓
For-profit → Public Benefit Corpnonprofit stays in control
Anthropic
Long-Term Benefit Trusttrustees hold no equity
↓
Delaware Public Benefit Corptrust elects/removes majority of board
Supporters
Trust is a durable safeguard for a safety-focused, long-term strategy
Nonprofit control keeps safety considerations central
Skeptics
Guardians who lack accountability risk inefficiency & a "mission meltdown"
High legal bar leaves shareholders little recourse — could deter capital
The defining question as both firms court public markets and tens of billions from Microsoft, Google & Amazon:
Will investors accept governance that legally subordinates their returns to a stated mission — and does that mission genuinely advance the public interest?
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