Sam Altman will return to OpenAI as its chief executive, the high-profile AI firm said on Wednesday. This remarkable turnaround brings to a close an intensive five days of conversations, arguments, and persuasion in the wake of Altman’s unexpected termination from the startup he co-founded just one week ago.
OpenAI, the most valued United States startup, said it had struck an “agreement in principle” for Altman’s return to the company. Additionally, the startup is revamping its board of directors by removing many members who came under harsh scrutiny for their decisions the previous week.
Bret Taylor, a former co-chief executive at Salesforce; Larry Summers, a former United States Secretary of the Treasury; and Adam D’Angelo, the creator of Quora, will join the new board at the AI business. According to the startup, Taylor will chair the board of directors.
Microsoft, which has spent over $11 billion in OpenAI and owns around 49% of the business, was caught aback by OpenAI’s decision last week and hastened to appoint Altman to run a new AI department at the software conglomerate. OpenAI is a pioneer in artificial intelligence (AI), and Microsoft owns approximately 49% of the company. Greg Brockman, the previous president of OpenAI, and many other company employees resigned in protest of the board’s previous decision. Brockman, who had previously worked for Microsoft, said he would join the company.
Altman responded to OpenAI’s action on Wednesday by saying, “I love OpenAI, and everything I’ve done over the past few days has been in service of keeping this team and its mission together.” On Sunday evening, I decided to join Microsoft, and it was immediately apparent that this was the wisest course of action for both myself and the team. I look forward to returning to OpenAI with the backing of the new board and Satya, where I will continue strengthening our relationship with Microsoft.
The changes made to the OpenAI board today, according to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, gave him hope. Nadella expressed dissatisfaction with the OpenAI board’s decision last week and vowed to ensure Microsoft is never “surprised” again.
“This is crucial to a more stable, well-informed, and effective government. Sam, Greg, and I have had a conversation, and we agree that they have a significant role to play, in addition to being a member of the OAI leadership team, in ensuring that OAI continues to flourish and develop on its purpose. We look forward to expanding upon our successful cooperation and bringing the benefits of the next generation of AI to all our business partners and customers.
In television interviews conducted earlier this week, Nadella stated that he had already communicated to the board of directors of OpenAI that Microsoft would be working with Altman and Brockman “either way.” He also did not rule out Altman and Brockman returning to OpenAI. He stated that Microsoft will stay dedicated to the firm, which has captivated the world’s attention through its ChatGPT platform in a manner that very few technologies have in the past. He claimed that OpenAI would continue to develop its artificial general intelligence (AI) technology.
OpenAI is not only widely considered to be in the lead in the present race for artificial intelligence (AI), but it has also seized the position of kingmaker for thousands of other firms building atop its software products in fewer than twelve months. Wall Street now has a more favorable perspective on Microsoft’s future due to the company’s investments in OpenAI, which have boosted Microsoft’s AI initiatives and helped the company attract several firms.
The previous board of OpenAI, which included chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, independent directors D’Angelo, technology entrepreneur Tasha McCauley, and Helen Toner from the Georgetown Center for Security and Emerging Technology, was subjected to intense public scrutiny due to their hasty decision, for which they did not provide a comprehensive explanation. According to a Reuters story from Tuesday, several OpenAI investors, who had grown increasingly dissatisfied with the previous OpenAI board, reportedly started looking into the possibility of filing a lawsuit against the board members.
Joshua Kushner, the founder of Thrive Capital, an investor in OpenAI who had advocated for Altman’s return, said on Wednesday that the business had the “potential to be one of the most consequential companies in the history of computing.” In 2014, Altman founded OpenAI. Altman and Brockman “possess a profound commitment to the integrity of the company, as well as an unmatched ability to inspire and lead.” They co-founded the firm and were instrumental in its development into what it is now, so our anticipation for their return to the business is through the roof.
“The resiliency and tenacity that we have witnessed from the OpenAI team in the past few days have been incredible, and we consider it a great pleasure to be their partners both now and in the future. We believe this is the most significant possible conclusion for the firm, its workers, those who build on the company’s innovations, and the general public.
Emmett Shear, who formerly served as the chief executive officer of Twitch and was named on Sunday as the temporary leader of OpenAI, expressed his satisfaction with the organization’s most recent decision. “Before joining OpenAI, I was unsure of the best way to go. This route offered the greatest possible protection while also doing what was ethically responsible for all the parties involved. He wrote on platform X, “I’m glad to have been a part of the solution.”