Sam Altman has been reinstated as the CEO of OpenAI just four days after being fired by the board. The board cited a loss of confidence in Altman’s leadership abilities as the reason for his dismissal. However, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), OpenAI announced that an agreement had been reached for Altman to return as CEO with a new initial board consisting of Bret Taylor as Chair, Larry Summers, and Adam D’Angelo.
Altman expressed his excitement about returning to OpenAI and building on the strong partnership with Microsoft. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who had previously confirmed Altman’s move to the tech giant, stated that he was open to Altman staying at OpenAI but believed that a change in leadership was necessary.
Speculation about Altman’s possible return to OpenAI had been circulating since shortly after his firing, and talks between both parties, including Microsoft, began on Tuesday. An internal memo from OpenAI Vice President of Global Affairs, Anna Makanju, revealed that the company was in intense discussions to unify its divided staff and that Altman was being consulted about a possible return.
On Monday night, almost all of OpenAI’s staff threatened to quit and follow Altman to Microsoft. They expressed their dissatisfaction with the board’s competence and judgment and demanded their resignation. Despite lucrative offers from Salesforce, most employees refused and remained loyal to Altman and OpenAI.
OpenAI had also approached rival AI start-up Anthropic’s CEO, Dario Amodei, about replacing Altman and potentially merging the two companies, but the offer was declined.
The board then offered the role of interim chief to ex-Twitch CEO Emmett Shear, who accepted. However, news of Altman’s return prompted Shear to express his satisfaction with the outcome.
Investors had been pressuring the board to reverse its decision and had approached Microsoft, OpenAI’s largest shareholder, for intervention on Altman’s behalf. Microsoft, which has invested billions in OpenAI, was open to Altman staying at the company.
After his firing, Altman reportedly informed investors of plans to launch a new venture, potentially in collaboration with Mr. Brockman. Additionally, discussions between Altman and Jony Ive, Apple’s former design chief, about a new AI hardware device were reported.
The OpenAI board installed Mira Murati as interim CEO following Altman’s dismissal. The company emphasized that a search process for a permanent successor was underway.
Altman gained recognition with the launch of ChatGPT last year, which sparked advancements in AI research and development and attracted significant investments. It was reported that Altman’s efforts to monetize the GPT-4 model while keeping its inner functioning secret became problematic for the board, leading to his dismissal.
With Altman’s return, OpenAI aims to continue its mission with renewed leadership and the support of Microsoft.
