In a surprising turn of events on November 17th, OpenAI’s board announced the immediate departure of co-founder and CEO Sam Altman. The board cited Altman’s lack of consistent candour in communications as the reason behind his firing, hindering the board’s ability to fulfil its responsibilities. Mira Murati, OpenAI’s chief technology officer, stepped in as the interim CEO, but her support for Altman wasn’t enough to prevent further changes.
Within days of Altman’s ouster, former Twitch executive Emmett Shear was appointed as the new interim CEO, marking the third CEO in as many days. Altman, in a last-ditch effort, visited OpenAI’s offices for negotiations to potentially reinstate himself. Despite support from key investors, including Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Altman failed to reclaim his position.
Emmett Shear, a co-founder of Twitch, resigned as CEO of the Amazon-owned video streaming platform in March, expressing his desire to be more present for his newborn son. Shear will now take over as interim CEO, replacing Murati until a permanent replacement is found.
The decision to remove Altman comes shy of one year after the successful launch of ChatGPT, a groundbreaking AI language model. ChatGPT quickly gained popularity, boasting over 100 million weekly users and inspiring a rush within the industry to develop generative AI tools and accompanying hardware.
Altman’s departure prompted a series of changes within OpenAI, with Murati publicly endorsing Altman and planning to reinstate Altman and former president Greg Brockman. Brockman had resigned as chairman of the board in solidarity with Altman.
The shakeup at OpenAI raises questions about the future direction of the company and its leadership. As the search for a permanent CEO begins, the tech community will closely watch how this influential organization navigates the aftermath of Altman’s abrupt exit.
