It seems that the days of controversy at OpenAI have come to an end. Sam Altman will return as CEO of the start-up. He himself stated this in response to a publication that the company made announcing his return. It will not be the only change, OpenAI also assured that the new board of directors will be made up of Bret Taylor as president as well as Larry Summers and Adam D'Angelo:
❤️🫡❤️ https://t.co/n1x47m5bTZ
— Sam Altman (@sama) November 22, 2023
It all started last Friday, when the technology company announced Altman's departure, a move that neither the company's investors nor the employees viewed favorably. Microsoft was quick to seize the opportunity and just two days after Altman left office, the CEO of Big Tech, Satya Nadella, announced by surprise Altman's hiring:
the mission continues https://t.co/d1pHiFxcSe
— Sam Altman (@sama) November 20, 2023
Employees threaten to leave the start-up
The consequences for OpenAI kept coming and Microsoft seized the moment. Now it was the employees who threatened the start-up with leaving the company and going with Altman to work for the technology giant. They did so through a letter, to which the Financial Times obtained access, in which a total of 747 of the company's 770 workers assured that they would leave OpenAI following the latest decisions made by its board of directors:
We, the undersigned, could choose to resign from OpenAI and join the recently announced Microsoft subsidiary led by Sam Altman and Greg Brockman. Microsoft has assured us that there are positions for all OpenAI employees in this new subsidiary should we decide to join. We will take this step imminently unless all current board members resign and the board appoints two new lead independent directors, including Bret Taylor and Will Hurd, and reinstates Sam Altman and Greg Brockman.
Microsoft congratulates OpenAI for bringing back Altman
Ultimately, the employees won the battle and five days after Altman was fired, the startup has not only gotten its CEO back but has also been forced to change its board of directors to satisfy workers who, on the contrary, would have become part of the Artificial Intelligence division of Microsoft, one of its main rivals that, for its part, congratulated the technology company for having recovered Altman:
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
