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Sam Altman ousted from OpenAI, CTO Mira Murati named interim CEO

3 weeks ago
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ChatGPT developer OpenAI has removed founder Sam Altman as CEO, according to a November 17 blog post. Mira Murati, chief technology officer, will be promoted to interim CEO. According to the post, the board engaged in a “deliberative review process,” which resulted in the conclusion that Altman “has not been consistently candid in his communications with the board, which which hindered his ability to carry out his responsibilities.

Altman could not immediately be reached for comment.

The OpenAI board said it remains committed to creating artificial intelligence (AI) applications in the future:

“OpenAI was purposefully structured to advance our mission: to ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity. The board remains fully committed to serving this mission. (…) Mira is exceptionally qualified to take on the role of interim CEO. We have the greatest confidence in his ability to lead OpenAI during this transition period.

Related: OpenAI Halts New ChatGPT Plus Signups Amid High Demand

The board also said it was “grateful for Sam’s many contributions to the creation and growth of OpenAI” but asserted that “new leadership is needed as we move forward.” Board Chairman Greg Brockman will also step down. However, he will remain an employee, “reporting to the CEO,” according to the message.

The board of directors consists of Adam D’Angelo, Tasha McCauley, Helen Toner, and OpenAI Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever. According to the post, the majority of board members are “independent directors” who do not hold equity in OpenAI.

The appointed interim CEO, Mira Murati, is an Albanian-born and Dartmouth-educated engineer recognized for her contributions to OpenAI’s key products as Chief Technology Officer, and will assume the interim role of Chief Executive Officer of OpenAI. Ms. Murati has experience in aerospace, automotive, virtual reality and augmented reality, and served as a senior product manager at Tesla, contributing to the Model AI in real-world applications. She joined OpenAI in 2018.

Altman is also the founder of Tools for Humanity and the developer of the Worldcoin crypto project. Cointelegraph reached out to Tools for Humanity for comment but did not hear back at the time of publication.

This is a developing story and more information will be added as it becomes available.