## OpenAI Acquires Promptfoo to Fortify Its AI Agent Platform

OpenAI has announced the acquisition of Promptfoo, an AI security startup established in 2024 with a mission to defend large language models (LLMs) from malicious online threats. The announcement came on Monday, signaling the company's deepening commitment to building safer, enterprise-grade AI systems.

### Technology Integration Into OpenAI Frontier

According to an official blog post from OpenAI, Promptfoo's security capabilities will be woven into OpenAI Frontier — the company's enterprise platform designed to power autonomous AI agents — once the acquisition is formally completed. This integration marks a strategic step toward making agentic AI tools not only more capable, but significantly more secure.

## Why AI Security Is Now a Business Priority

The rapid rise of autonomous AI agents — systems capable of independently executing complex digital tasks — has sparked widespread enthusiasm over potential productivity gains across industries. However, this same advancement has opened new attack surfaces for bad actors seeking to exploit sensitive data or manipulate automated workflows.

This acquisition reflects a broader trend among frontier AI laboratories racing to demonstrate that their technologies are trustworthy and robust enough for deployment in high-stakes business environments.

### About Promptfoo and Its Founders

Promptfoo was co-founded by Ian Webster and Michael D'Angelo, who built the startup around tools designed to help organizations identify and address security vulnerabilities within LLMs. Their offerings include both an open source interface and a developer library, which have reportedly been adopted by more than 25% of Fortune 500 companies — a testament to the platform's real-world impact.

Despite its impressive reach, Promptfoo raised a relatively modest $23 million in total funding. The startup was valued at $86 million following its most recent funding round in July 2025, according to data from PitchBook. OpenAI has not disclosed the financial terms of the acquisition.

## What Promptfoo's Technology Brings to OpenAI

OpenAI outlined several key capabilities that Promptfoo's technology will bring to its agent platform:

- **Automated red-teaming** to proactively identify weaknesses in AI systems
- **Security evaluation of agentic workflows** to detect potential vulnerabilities before they can be exploited
- **Real-time activity monitoring** to address risk management and regulatory compliance needs

OpenAI also confirmed its intention to continue developing and expanding Promptfoo's open source offerings, ensuring the broader developer community continues to benefit from the platform's security tools.

## A Signal of the Industry's Security-First Shift

This move underscores a pivotal shift in how leading AI companies are approaching deployment. As autonomous agents become more deeply embedded in critical business operations, security is no longer an afterthought — it is a foundational requirement. By bringing Promptfoo's expertise in-house, OpenAI is positioning itself to lead not just in AI capability, but in AI trustworthiness.

OpenAI acquires AI security startup Promptfoo to integrate advanced red-teaming and vulnerability testing into its enterprise AI agent platform, OpenAI Frontier

OpenAI Acquires Promptfoo to Secure AI Agent Platform

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OpenAI Strengthens AI Security by Acquiring Startup Promptfoo

## Grammarly's New AI Feature Borrows Famous Names — Without Permission

Grammarly recently rolled out a feature called **Expert Review**, promising users writing feedback inspired by some of the world's most respected authors, intellectuals, and journalists. Sounds impressive — until you dig a little deeper.

Launched in August 2025 as part of a broader wave of AI-powered upgrades, Expert Review appears as a sidebar tool within Grammarly's writing assistant. It offers revision suggestions framed as coming "from the perspective" of notable subject matter experts, giving the impression that a real authority is weighing in on your prose.

## Famous Names, Zero Involvement

As outlets like *Wired* and *The Verge* have pointed out, Grammarly presents this feedback as though it originates from well-known writers — living or deceased. Even more surprisingly, the feature reportedly invokes the names of active tech journalists working at major publications including *The Verge*, *Wired*, *Bloomberg*, and *The New York Times*.

None of these individuals appear to have been consulted, compensated, or asked for permission. When *The Verge* reached out for comment, Alex Gay, Vice President of Product and Corporate Marketing at Grammarly's parent company Superhuman, explained that these figures are referenced simply because their published work is "publicly available and widely cited."

Grammarly's own user documentation attempts to address the obvious concern, stating: *"References to experts in Expert Review are for informational purposes only and do not indicate any affiliation with Grammarly or endorsement by those individuals or entities."*

## What Makes a Review 'Expert' If No Experts Are Involved?

That disclaimer might technically cover Grammarly's bases, but it opens up a much bigger question: if no real expert is actually reviewing your writing, in what meaningful sense is this an "expert review" at all?

Historian C.E. Aubin put it bluntly when speaking to *Wired*: **"These are not expert reviews, because there are no 'experts' involved in producing them."**

The feature appears to use AI models trained on publicly available writing to generate feedback that stylistically mimics how a given expert might respond — but that's a far cry from genuine human insight or editorial guidance.

## A Clever Idea With a Credibility Problem

On the surface, the concept behind Expert Review is genuinely interesting. The idea of receiving writing feedback tailored to the style and standards of a respected author or journalist has real appeal — especially for users looking to sharpen their craft.

But the execution raises serious ethical questions. Using someone's name and professional reputation to market an AI feature — without their knowledge — blurs an important line. It risks misleading users into believing they're receiving a quality of feedback that simply isn't there, while simultaneously trading on the credibility of real people who never agreed to participate.

## The Bottom Line

Grammarly's Expert Review feature is a prime example of how AI-powered tools can over-promise through clever branding. Wrapping algorithmic suggestions in the names of respected thinkers and writers may make the product feel more authoritative — but without genuine expert involvement, the "expert" label is little more than marketing gloss.

For users seeking genuine writing improvement, it's worth understanding exactly what these tools are — and what they aren't.

Grammarly's Expert Review feature uses famous names to offer AI writing tips — but none of those experts were consulted or gave permission.

OpenAI Strengthens AI Security by Acquiring Startup Promptfoo

Grammarly's 'Expert Review' Feature Has One Major Problem: No Actual Experts