OpenAI’s independent board of directors gave two examples of Sam Altman’s dishonesty that allegedly led to their firing of co-founder and CEO Sam Altman, plunging the company into atrocities.
On Sunday night, Ilya Sutskever introduced Emmett Shear, who was formerly Twitch’s CEO, to the staff. Shear was appointed interim CEO of OpenAI, replacing Mira Murati, who was appointed to replace Altman in just two days on Friday.
The briefing, which took place on Sunday at one of OpenAI’s San Francisco offices, was attended by only a handful of the company’s employees. The remainder voluntarily skipped attending the meeting.
Employees spent the day waiting for the announcement of Altman’s reappointment as CEO. For about 30 minutes on Sunday night, staff were told internally that Altman would return, then again that he would not, and then Shear’s appointment.
When employees learned of Shear’s appointment, most of them were “very upset,” one of the people said. This came as another shock to staff, who had been experiencing anxiety all weekend, especially about the reasons for firing Sam Altman.
The announcement of Shear’s appointment left out the chief scientists and one of its founders, Sutskever, who helped vote to fire Altman and carried out the firing via Google Meet, one of the people said. . Sutskever appeared “calm” during the meeting, one of the people said.
Employees and those interested in this technology field, wonder the real reason behind OpenAI’s criticism that “Altman is frequently dishonest in its communications with the board.” What is that.
Sutskever is said to have given two explanations he received from the council, according to a source from one of his acquaintances.
- One explanation is that Altman allegedly assigned the same project to two people at OpenAI.
- The remaining reason is said to be that Altman gave two different opinions about an employee to two council members.
These explanations did not make sense to the staff and were not accepted, one of the acquaintances said. However, according to many internal opinions, this is an “intentional overthrow” directly from the board, as they say both inside and outside the company. Any reasons given by the council now make no sense to staff, this person said.
Hours after that meeting, a letter was drafted, signed by OpenAI leadership including Murati and Sutskever, sent to all employees overnight. In it, they protested the board’s decision not to reappoint Altman.
By mid-day Monday, according to latest records, more than 90% of employees had signed. In the letter, employees asserted they would quit if the remaining board members did not leave, if no new members were appointed, and if Altman was not returned to the company.
Currently, Altman is said to be still negotiating a possible return while he holds a temporary position at Microsoft, arranged by CEO Satya Nadella. Microsoft is OpenAI’s largest investor, with at least $10 billion invested in the company.
“People are angry and mass resignations are inevitable,” said one of the people familiar with the situation.
The company’s current board of directors includes Adam D’Angelo, CEO of Quora; Tasha McCauley, a technology entrepreneur; Helen Toner, of Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technologies; and Sutskever.
Although Sutskever also signed the open letter threatening to leave the company, he is said to remain a member of the board. Altman and Greg Brockman, general manager of OpenAI, also previously served as members of the board.
Although Murati was a source of anger for many employees immediately after Altman was fired, as she was his original replacement and reportedly knew he was being fired the day before.
According to people in the know, she allegedly “blamed” Sutskever immediately after the incident on Friday. Now when she decides to leave the company if Altman doesn’t return. Sutskever, who also publicly expressed “regret” about participating in the council’s disenfranchisement of Altman.
Some people wonder if all of these leaders will continue to work with the OpenAI team and lead somewhere else. However, others believe that Sutskever will not be easily forgiven and will not be invited to stay, or participate in a new project at Microsoft.
So what is the actual reason? India Today speculates that Sam Altman did something unforgivable and that there was a conflict in the company’s leadership.
When it was first founded, OpenAI was a non-profit organization, completely devoted to helping the community. But since the ChatGPT craze, Altman wants to direct the company completely in the direction of profit: doing business and selling products. Although, he himself was once worried about the rapid development of AI.
In China alone, there are currently 238 models like ChatGPT in operation. Similarly in the US, both Elon Musk and Amazon are developing AI models.
Sam Altman’s ambition is that ChatGPT must always be at the forefront of these models. And to do that costs a lot of money. So do you prioritize profits or prioritize the safety of AI? This is said to be the biggest conflict between Sam Altman and OpenAI’s Board of Directors.
Summary of the entire crisis at OpenAI since the dismissal of Sam Altman:
Date 2023-11-17
- Firing announcement: OpenAI officially announced Altman’s dismissal due to lack of trust in his leadership abilities, creating a wave of harsh reactions.
Date 2023-11-18
- Altman’s reaction: Altman shared his feelings with much surprise and shock on social networks.
- Greg Brockman’s comments: Brockman clarified his removal from the board with an attention-grabbing tweet.
Date 2023-11-19
- Interim CEO change: Mira Murati was appointed interim CEO following Altman’s departure.
Date 2023-11-20
- Microsoft move: Microsoft’s Satya Nadella hired Altman and fired OpenAI executives to lead the new AI team at Microsoft.
- Nadella’s compliments: Nadella expressed enthusiasm about hiring Altman to lead the new team and said it would greatly accelerate AI innovation at Microsoft.
Date 2023-11-21
- Employee reaction: More than 95% of OpenAI employees threatened to resign if the Board of Directors did not restore Altman to the CEO position and accept a new job offer from Microsoft.
Date 2023-11-22
- Employee demands: Employees demanded Altman’s reinstatement, asking the company’s Board of Directors and new executives to resign.
- Nadella hints at Altman’s return: Nadella hints at the possibility of Altman returning to OpenAI and leaving decision-making power to the company’s shareholders.
- Sutskever’s regrets: Ilya Sutskever, a key figure in the decision to fire Altman, expressed his regrets and his love for the company, pledging to keep it united.
Date 2023-11-23
- Establishment of a new Board of Directors: Bret Taylor (Chairman of the Board of Directors – Former CEO of Shopify, Salesforce, Twitter), Larry Summers (Former President of Harvard University, Former Secretary of Finance) and Adam D’Angelo (CEO of Quora, Poe AI, Former CTO Meta).
- Sam Altman reinstated as CEO of OpenAI: The OpenAI board of directors has reinstated CEO Sam Altman, following employee reaction.
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