Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Friday he courted OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and other AI leaders to join a new federal Artificial Intelligence Safety and Security Board.

Why it matters: The board is full of AI heavyweights, including the CEOs of Microsoft, Google and IBM — bringing together fierce competitors and egos in an effort to ensure AI works in the national interest.

• The board's members also include researchers, industry critics and government officials.

Zoom in: The 16 critical infrastructure sectors the board will deal with range from energy to agriculture and the defense industrial base.

• The board will be "focused on practical guidelines and best practices for safe, secure and responsible AI: Not a board focused on theory," Mayorkas said on a press briefing call.

Behind the scenes: Mayorkas told reporters he personally selected the board members and traveled the country to meet them in person before confirming their participation.

The intrigue: Mayorkas said he deliberately chose not to include "social media companies," including Meta and X in the group, though those companies also have substantial AI operations.

• The Homeland Security board's roster broadly overlaps with the participant list from previous Biden administration AI conclaves.

What they're saying: "I had no hesitation in selecting Sam [Altman], and he had no hesitation in joining," per Mayorkas.

• "I met personally with Sam and his team at OpenAI's headquarters. Sam reflected a clear and deep understanding of the implications of implementing AI in our nation's critical infrastructure. Dario Amodei at Anthropic is another thought leader," he said, later name-checking Microsoft's Satya Nadella and Google's Sundar Pichai — all of whom are on the board.

What's next: The board will meet in the first week of May to discussion "foundational principles" for the group.