Russian prank duo posing as Ukraine's spy chief fooled three OpenAI security officials into a 17-minute call about offensive AI

A well-known Russian prank duo impersonated a senior Ukrainian official and held a 17-minute video call with three of OpenAI's national security staff.

According to The Intercept on Nov. 11, the pair known as Vovan and Lexus posed as Rustem Umerov, head of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service, and spoke with Sasha Baker, who runs national security policy at OpenAI, strategic initiatives lead Caroline Zier and Ben Crampton, who handles European national security matters. They posted the recording on Rumble. The fake Umerov appears to have kept his camera off throughout, and Baker and Zier said they were glad to speak with him again.

The call covered military support for Ukraine, including the possibility of offensive capabilities. "We want to have as deep a relationship as we possibly can with Ukraine. But it may not be possible to get to where we want to be straight away," Crampton said, adding that many senior people at the company are reluctant to get too involved in offensive military uses. The officials also mentioned work with Ukraine's government around the Daybreak Blue vulnerability-fixing model and early contact with its defense ministry. Asked about Elon Musk, Baker said, "I'm afraid we probably can't help you with Elon Musk. He's not a fan of our CEO either."

OpenAI spokesperson Nate Evans told The Intercept the company investigated weeks ago, concluded it was a prank and took steps to prevent a repeat. The duo has pranked figures from Elton John to John McCain since 2011 and denies working with the Russian government. A Polymarket post resurfacing the story on Nov. 13 drew nearly 2,000 likes.