On Friday, OpenAI’s board announced Sam Altman’s departure as CEO and appointed CTO Mira Murati as interim leader.
“The board of directors of OpenAI, Inc, the 501(c)(3) that acts as the overall governing body for all OpenAI activities, today announced that Sam Altman will depart as CEO and leave the board of directors. Mira Murati, the company’s chief technology officer, will serve as interim CEO, effective immediately.”
On Tuesday, they agreed for Altman to return as CEO with a new board.
We have reached an agreement in principle for Sam Altman to return to OpenAI as CEO with a new initial board of Bret Taylor (Chair), Larry Summers, and Adam D'Angelo.
We are collaborating to figure out the details. Thank you so much for your patience through this.
— OpenAI (@OpenAI) November 22, 2023
OpenAI and Microsoft have made headlines in the tech industry in the last two weeks.
- On November 6, at DevDay, Altman introduced custom GPTs and a monetized GPT store. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella joined him to announce a deeper partnership.
- On November 15, Microsoft announced the integration of GPTs and plugins into its services.
- On November 19, the OpenAI board removed Altman as CEO.
- On November 20, Nadella announced Altman, Brockman, and other OpenAI colleagues would join Microsoft.
In addition, most OpenAI employees have signed a letter asking the board to resign.
Follow the fifth day of coverage or explore the timeline of events from when the shakeup started to today.
Sam Altman To Return As OpenAI CEO
OpenAI has reached a tentative agreement for Sam Altman to reassume the CEO position, with a newly formed board. The organization is currently collaborating to finalize the details and expresses gratitude for the patience shown during this process.
We have reached an agreement in principle for Sam Altman to return to OpenAI as CEO with a new initial board of Bret Taylor (Chair), Larry Summers, and Adam D'Angelo.
We are collaborating to figure out the details. Thank you so much for your patience through this.
— OpenAI (@OpenAI) November 22, 2023
i love openai, and everything i’ve done over the past few days has been in service of keeping this team and its mission together. when i decided to join msft on sun evening, it was clear that was the best path for me and the team. with the new board and w satya’s support, i’m…
— Sam Altman (@sama) November 22, 2023
We are encouraged by the changes to the OpenAI board. We believe this is a first essential step on a path to more stable, well-informed, and effective governance. Sam, Greg, and I have talked and agreed they have a key role to play along with the OAI leadership team in ensuring… https://t.co/djO6Fuz6t9
— Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) November 22, 2023
Returning to OpenAI & getting back to coding tonight.
— Greg Brockman (@gdb) November 22, 2023
I am deeply pleased by this result, after ~72 very intense hours of work. Coming into OpenAI, I wasn’t sure what the right path would be. This was the pathway that maximized safety alongside doing right by all stakeholders involved. I’m glad to have been a part of the solution. https://t.co/AGoDBbwhkq
— Emmett Shear (@eshear) November 22, 2023
OpenAI Announces New ChatGPT Update
In its first post since the leadership transition announcement, OpenAI announced the availability of voice features for all ChatGPT users.
Other OpenAI team members hinted at more updates to come.
If you liked the low-key research preview, just wait until you get the real deal
— Felipe Such (@felipesuch) November 21, 2023
Will Altman Join Microsoft Or Return To OpenAI?
According to Bloomberg sources, negotiations are underway between Altman and the OpenAI board. What do you think will happen?
Will @sama return to @OpenAI or join @microsoft?
— Kristi Hines (@kristileilani) November 21, 2023
Website Traffic For ChatGPT Remains Consistent
Screenshot from Similarweb, November 2023Featured image: MeSSrro/Shutterstock
