What’s going on at ChatGPT’s company, OpenAI? Keys to the crisis

The decision spelled an earthquake for the tech industry, sinking the influential startup that was a leader in the tech sector. artificial intelligence (AI)is in deep crisis.

We summarize what is happening here under five headings.

1. Surprise layoff

The board of directors made a short and harsh statement. OpenAI He announced that Altman had been dismissed for lack of trust and accused him of withholding information. “Mr. Altman’s departure follows a deliberative review process by the board of directors, which concluded that he was consistently insincere in his communications with the board and hindered his ability to fulfill his responsibilities,” the post on the corporate blog said. “The board is no longer confident in his ability to continue leading OpenAI.”

Co-founder shortly after Greg Brockman announced that he was resigning as chairman of OpenAI’s board of directors in protest. “Sam and I are shocked and saddened by the Board’s actions today,” he said in a message on X, the social network formerly known as Twitter. Other employees upset about Altman’s firing also resigned from their positions.

2. Chaotic weekend

Altman’s dismissal just hours before the New York Stock Exchange closed opened the door to a chaotic weekend. And the board’s decision was made without informing either investors or OpenAI employees. Equal MicrosoftThe main partner of the company investment Over 11,000 million, I was going blindly. ‘According to Axios’ report, the computer giant’s management was informed only a minute before the layoff statement was made public.

This way of proceeding caused much rejection among both investors and employees, who protested on Saturday and Sunday to demand Altman’s reinstatement. The pressure led to discussions within the OpenAI board, where changes were proposed to include new figures such as: Brian CheskyCEO of Airbnb or Sheryl Sandberg‘He is the former chief operating officer of Facebook, according to The Wall Street Journal.’ However, the board persisted with its decision to dismiss Altman.

3. Why were you fired?

OpenAI’s management chose a very unusual procedure. Added to the lack of detailed explanations, experts believe there is a much bigger problem behind Altman’s dismissal than has been reported. In the first hours, many American media reported that this could be an internal conflict between executives under Altman’s leadership who wanted to go faster to reap more benefits and those who bet on the safer development of the company. artificial intelligence.

However, ‘The Washington Post’ states that this will be a personal matter and not about this or a decision regarding OpenAI products. “Given Altman’s talent, his power, and how well-liked he was, it was hard to go against him,” an insider said. Following the launch of ChatGPT, Altman became one of the most influential figures on AI regulation, leading him to meet regularly with senior political leaders. His supporters within OpenAI describe his dismissal as a “coup.”

4. How about Altman?

On Saturday morning, the French Minister of Digital Affairs, Jean-Noel Barrot“His team and talents are welcomed in France,” Altman said. However, the American businessman and investor eventually signed for Microsoft. This Monday, the general manager, Satya Nadellaannounced that both he and Brockman will join the computing giant to lead a new team of researchers in advanced artificial intelligence.

5. Who currently runs OpenAI?

In a statement released Friday, OpenAI’s board of directors said the engineer Mira Murati, the company’s current chief technology officer and supporter of ChatGPT, will assume Altman’s interim CEO position. This Sunday, it was announced that the position will be filled by: Emmett Cuttingco-founder of video platform Twitch.