Sam Altman, the chief executive and co-founder of OpenAI, has been ousted from his own company after its board accused him of “being not consistently candid in his communications”, reports The Guardian.
A major shakeup
Altman’s dismissal is a major shakeup in Silicon Valley. Following the launch of ChatGPT, the wildly popular chatbot developed by OpenAI, Altman became one of the world’s most visible tech executives and a sought-after expert on artificial intelligence.
In a statement on Friday, Open AI’s board “no longer has confidence in his ability to lead” and said new leadership is “necessary” as the company moves forward, said a statement posted on its website. He is likewise leaving the company’s board.
“Mr. Altman’s departure follows a deliberative review process by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities,” the board’s statement said. What Altman had allegedly hidden from his company’s board was not clear.
Altman tweeted a sunny message after the combative announcement.
“I loved my time at Openai. it was transformative for me, and hopefully the world a little bit. most of all I loved working with such talented people. will have more to say about what’s next later,” he wrote.
Mira Murati, OpenAI’s CTO, will become interim CEO in his place, according to the statement. Murati has been a part of the San Francisco-based company’s leadership for five years. Greg Brockman will step down from his role as the chair of the board but will retain his other position as OpenAI president, according to the statement.
Brockman announced his departure on social media on Friday. “Based on today’s news, I quit,” he wrote.
Emergency meeting
The announcement blindsided employees, many of whom learned of the sudden ouster from an internal announcement and the company’s public-facing blog. OpenAI scheduled an emergency all-hands meeting on Friday afternoon to discuss the news with employees, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Altman has been regarded as the leading voice in the AI field since his company released ChatGPT in November 2022. The generative AI chatbot accrued more than 100 million users in less than a year.
The 38-year-old has led efforts to create “artificial general intelligence”, or AGI, an AI system capable of completing any task a human can achieve.
Altman helped found the company in 2015, initially as a non-profit with a $1bn endowment from high-profile backers including Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman. Altman and Musk served as co-chairs with a goal “to advance digital intelligence in the way that is most likely to benefit humanity as a whole, unconstrained by a need to generate financial return”. In 2019, however, OpenAI reshaped itself around a “capped profit” model with Altman as the CEO.
After releasing ChatGPT last year, Altman was thrust into the spotlight. He has been among the most vocal proponents of artificial intelligence, but has also led calls for regulation and warned that the technology comes with risks as it reshapes society. He testified before the US Congress in May about what form AI legislation should take.
Did you subscribe to our daily Newsletter?
It’s Free! Click here to Subscribe
Source: The Guardian
