An unexpected turn of events surfaced at OpenAI. On a dramatic Friday, the board unsurprisingly axed Sam Altman, the sitting CEO. This decision became a catalyst for several consequential occurrences over the weekend.
Alarmed at the sudden ousting, the OpenAI board scrambled to redraft Altman for the top job. Sources reveal talks were initiated immediately, with Altman showing hesitancy in resuming his duties unless there were notable changes in the governance structure.
Spanning from this disruption, The Verge surfaced reports of Greg Brockman stepping aside from his role as president and co-founder at OpenAI. With him followed a number of senior research staff. Although the initial word was that Brockman would step back only from his board chairman position, it later became apparent that he had also distanced himself from the corporate ranks completely.
Reports indicate that the sacked CEO and the resigned president are plotting to commence their own AI venture. Furthermore, they were allegedly involved in negotiations with potential investors throughout the weekend.
As the weekend passed, a sweeping announcement was made by Microsoft on Sunday evening. Microsoft, a principal shareholder in OpenAI with significant investments in billions, reported that Altman, Brockman, along with other ex-OpenAI staff would form a new AI research team under their umbrella.
A distinct series of amendments were seen in the CEO position at OpenAI. In the wake of Friday's havoc, Mira Murati, the CTO, was appointed as the acting CEO. By Monday, however, news broke out that Emmett Shear, the ex-CEO from Twitch, superseded her in the interim capacity. This made Shear the third aspirant to the role within the span of just a few days.
Shear publicly shared his aspiration to join OpenAI in a statement on X. I was personally approached for the responsibility. OpenAI is among the most pivotal ventures today and its mission pulled me onboard, Shear confessed in the statement.
