Sam Altman, more than reinforced, is back at OpenAI.
But the soap opera of the earthquake in the artificial intelligence (AI) industry is not free and reveals the gap between the promoters who seek to accelerate expansion and commercial success (Altman) and those who fear that this tool could even wipe out humanity. .
The great protagonist of the week published a post yesterday in After intense negotiation, an agreement was reached with the board of this non-profit company for Altman’s return, although with the condition of replacing the members of that board who suddenly announced his dismissal last Friday. It was a surprise, although the polarization between the two factions, between the apocalyptics and the adventurers, with Altman at the helm, had been brewing for a long time.
His return should calm the internal revolt of practically all of the company’s 770 employees, who threatened to leave if their boss did not return and to follow him to Microsoft if that signing was finalized.
The agreement marks the beginning of the end of one of the most followed corporate sagas in the technology industry. In this rebellion forced from within, Altman wins by a landslide. He returns strengthened, without the altruistic restrictions of the board.
And Microsoft, the main investor with 13 billion in OpenAI, wins, which in this way sees its control over this company reinforced. Satya Nadella, its CEO, has pulled the strings to reach this result, which fulfills his goal of staying at the wheel of AI.
“We are encouraged by the changes on the OpenAI board,” Nadella said yesterday, who did not hide the more commercial profile of the directors. “This is an essential first step on the path towards more stable, well-informed and effective governance,” she stressed.
“Everything I have done these days has been in service of the team’s unity and its mission,” Altman insisted. “When I decided to join Microsoft, I was clear that it was best for the team, but with the new board and with the support of Satya I look forward to returning and building on our strong partnership,” he added.
Also back in the fold is Greg Brockman, who was the chairman of the board and, upon being demoted, chose to resign and leave with his friend.
The OpenAI board surprised everyone last Friday by announcing the dismissal of Altman, CEO and creator of ChatGPT and much more than that. He is the face of an expanding sector with a great future and many questions.
Managers said they had lost confidence in Altman. Once the heat was over, a negotiation was started to reconsider the situation and try to back down. Before the board castling, Nadella announced that Altman would join his company as head of a new AI laboratory.
In truth, Altman wanted to return to the company he founded. His main investor wanted it too. So many saw in the announcement of this Microsoft signing a ruse to force OpenAI to give in to the conditions of the expelled.
It worked. Employees quickly allied themselves with their former boss, expanding his myth.
In another statement on Larry Summers, former head of the Treasury Department, advisor to the Banking House and president of Harvard University, and Adam D’Angelo, head of the Quora website and former Facebook employee.
D’Angelo was already on the board of OpenAI. He is the only one who continues. The departing members are engineer and technology entrepreneur Tasha McCauley; Helen Torner, director of strategy, and Ilya Sutskeyer, prestigious AI researcher, scientific director and leader of the revolt against Altman for believing that he ran excessively without taking into account “dangerous” factors.
Sutskeyer, who earned the label of doomsayer-in-chief, later regretted the decision to fire Altman and signed the workers’ letter calling for his return.
The crisis has cost him his chair. He has managed, however, to talk about the risk of extinction of humanity that, according to his vision, AI can pose.