The CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altman has been fired by the board, the ChatGPT maker announced in an official blog post on Friday. The company said that Mira Murati, the company’s chief technology officer, will serve as interim CEO, effective immediately.
Sharing the reason behind Altman’s departure, the company said that the former CEO was not candid in his communications with the board – hindering their ability to exercise responsibility.
“Mr. Altman’s departure follows a deliberative review process by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities. The board no longer has confidence in his ability to continue leading OpenAI,” OpenAI blog post reads
The OpenAI board of directors said the company is thankful for Altman’s many contributions toward the founding and growth of the company, and believes that a new leadership is necessary moving forward.
“OpenAI was deliberately structured to advance our mission: to ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all humanity. The board remains fully committed to serving this mission. We are grateful for Sam’s many contributions to the founding and growth of OpenAI. At the same time, we believe new leadership is necessary as we move forward.” said the board
Speaking of the interim CEO Mira Murati, the board said that Mira is fit for the interim CEO role,
“As the leader of the company’s research, product, and safety functions, Mira is exceptionally qualified to step into the role of interim CEO. We have the utmost confidence in her ability to lead OpenAI during this transition period.” the board added
OpenAI’s board of directors consists of OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, independent directors Quora CEO Adam D’Angelo, technology entrepreneur Tasha McCauley, and Georgetown Center for Security and Emerging Technology’s Helen Toner.
OpenAI also informed that as a part of this transition, Greg Brockman will be stepping down as chairman of the board and will remain in his role at the company, reporting to the CEO.
According to OpenAI, Mira has been a member of OpenAI’s leadership team for five years and has played a critical role in turning the company into a global AI leader. She possesses a unique skill set, and understanding of OpenAI’s values, operations, and business as she is already leading the company’s research, product, and safety functions. Besides this, Murati’s long tenure and close engagement with all aspects of the company, and her experience in AI governance and policy make her uniquely qualified for the interim CEO role – warranting a smooth transition while the company searches for a permanent CEO.
