The OpenAI drama is not over: employees on the warpath and Sam Altman would return with one condition
In just three or four days, the artificial intelligence landscape has been dramatically transformed. On Friday morning, Sam Altman was the CEO of OpenAI, a leader in artificial intelligence development with chatbots behind him such as the famous ChatGPT.
By Monday, not only had he been fired by his board of directors suddenly after losing the trust of all of them, but he even had the support of Microsoft and Satya Nadella to be part, along with Greg Brockman, of a new team. advanced artificial intelligence and probably a new startup on your hands.
It seems that The main issue was finding the right balance between quickly bringing AI products to market and ensuring they were secure.. This was notable for the conflicting opinions of Sam Altman and his co-founder, Ilya Sutskever.
Ilya Sutskever, who was leading research at OpenAI, had and has a cautious approach and, after the departure of Sam Altman, The influence of this is likely to mark a change of approach. The company could start paying more attention to how artificial intelligence affects society, rather than simply how much money it can make.
On the other hand, new CEO Emmett Shear has so far been unable to obtain written documentation of the board’s reasoning for firing Altman, which has also not been shared with the company’s investors, according to people familiar with this entire process.
However, the current landscape for OpenAI seems to be far from calm and the waters are very choppy. Employees, led by prominent members of the management team, have raised their voices demanding the resignation of the entire board and the return of Altman.
OpenAI employees on the warpath: either the board resigns or they go to Microsoft
A previous statement, which includes signatures such as CTO Mira Murati and COO Brad Lightcap, alleges that the dismissal of Sam Altman has “compromised all work and undermined our mission and company”, it seems that it gave rise to everything that has come now.
The tension has reached its peak when virtually all of OpenAI’s employees, numbering 770, have reportedly signed a letter demanding the two points mentioned above: that Altman return and that the board that fired him resign.
They threaten a massive flight to Microsoft if the board does not resign, although it is unknown if this great company will finally welcome everyone into its ranks.
The problem with all this fuss now could have big consequences for some employees: those on non-citizen visas. At least 743 employees had signed the letter, and several of them expressed that your position could be at risk.
Among them is Reiichiro Nakano, in the process of obtaining a green card, and Boris Power, head of applied research at risk of losing his research visa. Jan Leike, co-head of OpenAI’s “super-alignment” team with Sutskever, also posted on X: “I think the OpenAI board should resign.”
Be careful because Sam Altman has not lost the battle and could return to OpenAI with one condition
Despite all these episodes that seem far from over this week, Sam Altman now surprises by not giving up his position at OpenAI. Along with co-founder Greg Brockman, Altman is willing to return if the remaining board members responsible for his firing resign.
Altman posted on
Sources close to the situation indicate that Altman and the investors are working to find a solution that allows the departure of the board and, consequently, avoid this mass exodus of employees who ultimately make up the large company that OpenAI currently is.
