The board of the company responsible for ChatGPT ousted OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on Friday, causing significant ripples in the tech industry. OpenAI's Chief Technology Officer, Mira Murati, will step in as the interim CEO, and the company plans to conduct a formal search for a permanent replacement.
Many employees were taken by surprise as the abrupt management reshuffling was revealed to them through an internal announcement and the company's public-facing blog, catching them off guard.
"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," OpenAI said in the blog without providing additional details or explanation.
Greg Brockman, the president and co-founder of OpenAI, who resigned from the board as chairman in the management restructuring, announced his departure from the compchaany on the messaging platform X late on Friday. "Based on today's news, I quit," he wrote.
Fueled by substantial funding from Microsoft, OpenAI kicked off the generative AI craze last November with the launch of its ChatGPT chatbot. This software application swiftly gained widespread popularity, becoming one of the fastest-growing applications globally.
Harnessing extensive datasets, generative AI has the capability to generate entirely new, human-like content, aiding users in tasks such as crafting term papers, completing science homework, and even composing entire novels. Following the launch of ChatGPT, regulators raced to catch up: the European Union underwent revisions to its AI Act, and the United States initiated efforts to regulate AI.
Altman, a serial entrepreneur and investor who led Y Combinator, served as the prominent face of OpenAI and the immensely popular generative AI technology, traveling worldwide throughout the year.
Shortly after OpenAI published its blog, Altman posted on X: "I loved my time at OpenAI. It was transformative for me personally, 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."
Altman did not reply to comment requests, and efforts to contact OpenAI for further comments proved unsuccessful.
Murati, with previous experience at Tesla, joined OpenAI in 2018 and subsequently assumed the role of the company's Chief Technology Officer. In this capacity, she supervised product launches, including the introduction of ChatGPT.
During an emergency all-hands meeting on Friday afternoon following the announcement, Murati sought to calm employees, stating that OpenAI's partnership with Microsoft remains stable. A person familiar with the matter told Reuters that executives from Microsoft, including CEO Satya Nadella, maintain confidence in the startup.
"Microsoft remains committed to Mira and their team as we bring this next era of AI to our customers," a spokesperson for the software maker told Reuters on Friday.
In a statement posted on Microsoft's website, Nadella remarked: "We have a long-term agreement with OpenAI. Together, we will continue to deliver the meaningful benefits of this technology to the world."
