Sam Altman vs. OpenAI: what happened so far
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OpenAI, the parent company of the popular AI chatbot ChatGPT, has gone through several leadership changes and internal turmoil in the last five days. In the latest news, the company has announced that the previously fired Sam Altman is returning to the company as CEO.
In case you haven't been following the recent developments surrounding the popular AI research company and its co-founder Sam Altman, here's a timeline of the events that have happened thus far.
DATE | EVENT |
November 17 | OpenAI board fires CEO, co-founder Sam Altman and President Greg Brockman quit after being removed from the board. The company names Mira Murati, CTO, as interim CEO. |
November 18 |
Altman's firing was over a "breakdown in communication between Sam and the board," and not "malfeasance", COO Brad Lightcap says in an internal memo |
November 18 | Early investor Khosla Ventures says it wants Altman back at OpenAI, "but will back him in whatever he does next". |
November 18 | Some employees contemplated quitting if Altman was not restored as CEO by the end of the weekend, while others expressed support for joining his new venture, people familiar with the matter said. |
November 19 | Altman discusses a possible return to the company and considers launching a new AI startup, a source tells Reuters. |
November 20 | Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says Microsoft has hired Altman, Brockman and their colleagues to lead a new advanced AI research team. |
November 20 | OpenAI appoints former Twitch boss Emmett Shear as interim CEO. Shear pledges to probe into Altman's exit. OpenAI board approaches rival Anthropic's CEO on the merger, for taking the top job, sources say. |
November 20 | Nearly all OpenAI staff threaten to quit and join Altman at Microsoft if the board doesn't resign, according to a letter seen by Reuters |
November 20 | Some investors in OpenAI are exploring legal recourse against the company's board, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. |
November 21 | OpenAI said Altman will return as CEO with a new initial board of Bret Taylor, Larry Summers, and Adam D'Angelo. Brockman will also be returning to the startup. |
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