Timeline of OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman’s Shocking Ouster
Here’s what everything happened since OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman was abruptly removed from his role.
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Welcome to the 150th edition of The AI Edge newsletter. This edition brings you - Everything that happened since OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman was abruptly removed from his role.
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In today’s edition:
😱 Timeline of OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman’s Shocking Ouster
📚 Knowledge Nugget: How to Use AI to Do Stuff: An Opinionated Guide by
Let’s go!
Timeline of OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman’s Shocking Ouster
Here’s what has happened since OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman was abruptly removed from his role:
Friday, Nov. 17
Ilya Sutskever schedules Google meet with Altman
According to an X post from Brockman, OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever sent Sam Altman a message to schedule a meeting for Friday afternoon.
Brockman informed Altman was fired
Just after midday on Nov. 17, Brockman got a text from Sutskever, asking him for a quick call. After joining the call a few minutes later, he was informed he was being removed from OpenAI’s board of directors but would maintain his role as president, plus Altman had been fired from his role.
OpenAI publicly confirmed that Sam Altman has been fired
OpenAI published a blog post saying Altman had been fired due to not being “consistently active in his communications with the board,” and also added Murati would be taking over as interim CEO.
Microsoft issues statement on OpenAI
Microsoft, the largest investor and partner in OpenAI, has openly issued a statement keeping Altman’s ousting in mind, with CEO Satya Nadella.
Greg Brockman resigns
Considering the public announcement of Altman’s ouster, Greg Brockman announced his own resignation.
Increasing numbers of Resignations
After Greg Brockman’s resignation, a number of senior OpenAI executives resigned, with the company’s head of preparedness, Aleksander Madfry, and director of research, Jakub Pachocki.
Saturday, Nov. 18
Altman will be back with a new AI venture
Media company The Information reported on Nov. 18 that Altman had already started discussing a new AI-related venture with investors. Greg Brockman is expected to join Altman in whatever endeavor he moves forward with.
Microsoft is extremely upset about Altman's removal and is pressuring the board to bring him back
Bloomberg's November 18 report highlighted Microsoft CEO Nadella's strong reaction to the decision, urging the board to reconsider bringing Altman back as CEO.
And the Board agrees to reconsider Sam Altman as CEO and Brockman as president.
Sources told Bloomberg that bringing back Altman as CEO may require the board to issue an apology and a statement that frees him of wrongdoing.
Sunday, Nov. 19
Altman at OpenAI as a guest
Sam Altman posted a picture to X on Nov. 19 at OpenAI’s headquarters with a guest badge.
Mira Murati remains as CEO, and simultaneously, the OpenAI board is seeking a different CEO.
Former Twitch head Emmett Shear hired as new OpenAI CEO
The Information reported late on Nov. 19 in the US that the board of directors announced Twitch co-founder Emmett Shear as the new CEO, while interim CEO Murati was planning to reinstate both Altman and Brockman in their respective roles at the company.
Monday, Nov. 20
Satya Nadella hires Sam Altman and Greg Brockman to Microsoft’s AI research team
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella decided to hire the former OpenAI team members, CEO Sam Altman and president Greg Brockman, to lead a new advanced AI research team.
Right after the announcement from Nadella, Altman retweeted the post saying, “the mission continues,” confirming his commitment to the progress of AI technology.
Why does this matter?
The story you've just gone through outlines the whirlwind of high-stakes power struggles, leadership changes, and shits in the AI landscape. OpenAI experiencing leadership crises might conflict with OpenAI's vision & direction. Moreover, Microsoft's announcement on onboarding Sam Altman and Greg Brockman to lead a new advanced AI research team may influence the competitive landscape.
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Knowledge Nugget: How to Use AI to Do Stuff: An Opinionated Guide
This article provides an opinionated guide on how to use AI for various tasks.
It highlights the current state of AI, particularly Large Language Models (LLMs), and discusses the major LLMs available from companies like OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic.
The guide then explores using AI for writing, creating images, generating ideas, making videos, working with documents and data, and obtaining information.
It also addresses potential concerns such as AI-generated falsehoods, biases, and ethical considerations.
Why does this matter?
The guide aims to provide orientation and recommendations for utilizing AI effectively and responsibly. It is a compass for navigating AI’s capabilities while advocating for mindful and ethical AI adoption in various domains.
What Else Is Happening❗
🚀 Meta Platforms reassigning members of its Responsible AI team to other groups
The move is aimed at bringing the staff closer to the development of core products and technologies. Most of the team members will be transferred to generative AI, where they will continue to work on responsible AI development and use. Some members will join the AI infrastructure team. (Link)
🚀 Germany, France, and Italy have reached an agreement on the regulation of AI
The 3 countries support "mandatory self-regulation through codes of conduct" for foundation models of AI, but oppose untested norms. They emphasize that the regulation should focus on the application of AI rather than the technology itself. (Link)
🚀 Frigate NVR - An open-source system that allows you to monitor your security cameras using real-time AI object detection. - The best part is that all the processing is done locally on your own hardware, ensuring your camera feeds stay within your home and providing an added layer of privacy and security. It will soon be available for use. (Link)
🚀 Amazon uses advanced AI to analyze customer reviews for authenticity before publishing them. - The majority of reviews pass the authenticity test and are posted immediately. However, if potential review abuse is detected, Amazon takes action by blocking or removing the review, revoking review permissions, blocking bad actor accounts, and even litigating against those involved. In 2022 alone, Amazon blocked over 200 million suspected fake reviews worldwide. (Link)
🚀 Some of Bing's search results now have Al-generated descriptions
Microsoft says it's using GPT-4 to improve the "most pertinent insights" from webpages and write summaries with Bing search results, also If AI writes the description, it'll notify you as an "AI-Generated Caption." (Link)
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