What Happened the Night Before Altman’s Firing?
Plus: The OpenAI soap opera season 1 ends, but season 2 possible.
Hello Engineering Leaders and AI Enthusiasts!
Welcome to the 153rd edition of The AI Edge newsletter. This edition brings you the mystery letter that may have led to Sam Altman’s ouster and the following chaos.
And a happy Thanksgiving to you all! We are deeply thankful for your continued support😊
In today’s edition:
➡️ A brief timeline of how OpenAI’s dramatic week unfolded
🔍 What happened the day before Sam Altman was fired by OpenAI
🔮 Why OpenAI boardroom drama might be far from over
Let’s go!
A brief timeline of how OpenAI’s dramatic week unfolded
November 16
The OpenAI board receives a letter from researchers warning of a powerful AI discovery that they said could threaten humanity. Reuters reported today that the initial ousting of Altman may have been sparked by this letter.
November 17
OpenAI board fires CEO, co-founder Sam Altman
President Greg Brockman quits after being removed from OpenAI’s board of directors
CTO Mira Murati is named interim CEO
November 18
Sam Altman is reported to be planning a new AI venture and Brockman is expected to join the effort
Some OpenAI employees contemplate quitting if Altman is not restored as CEO, and some expressed support to joining his new venture
Major investors pressure OpenAI board to reverse the decision
If Altman returns, the board will be replaced
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella urges OpenAI board to reconsider bringing Altman back as CEO
November 19
OpenAI rivals rush to poach OpenAI employees
Sam Altman discusses a possible return to the company
After a weekend of negotiations, Altman will not return
Emmett Shear, co-founder of Twitch, will take over as interim CEO
Dozens of staffers quit OpenAI
November 20
OpenAI staff revolt raises pressure on board to back down
Altman, Brockman, and other OpenAI employees would join Microsoft to lead “a new advanced AI research team”, says Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella
Nearly all of OpenAI's 700+ staff threatens to join Altman at Microsoft if he wasn't reinstated
More than 100 OpenAI customers consider defecting to rivals like Anthropic, Google, Microsoft
OpenAI board approaches Anthropic about a merger but is turned down
November 21
Sam Altman is reinstated as OpenAI CEO, Brockman also returns and there will be an internal investigation
A new initial board is formed, chaired by Bret Taylor, a former co-CEO of Salesforce, with former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and Adam D'Angelo as other members
What happened the day before the OpenAI board fired Altman?
Before OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s four-day exile, several staff researchers wrote a letter to the board of directors warning of a powerful AI discovery that they said could threaten humanity.
The letter was a key factor on a long list of grievances against Altman. The list also had concerns over commercializing advances before understanding the consequences.
While OpenAI declined to comment about this, it had acknowledged in an internal message to staffers a project called Q*. Some at OpenAI believe Q* (pronounced Q-Star) could be a breakthrough in the startup's search for artificial general intelligence (AGI).
Check out the Reuters report for more details.
Why OpenAI boardroom drama might be far from over
Despite the above report, the big question still remains unanswered: what happened between the board and Altman that led to his firing?
And Sam Altman faces the hard part– mending all the fractures that led to his ouster and followed it.
Among the most immediate challenges will be determining the role of Ilya Sutskever, the company’s visionary chief scientist, and his allies on the company’s AI safety team who initially supported Altman’s ouster. At the same time, Altman needs to act quickly to undo any damage to OpenAI’s standing with its customers and employees. Plus, there are reported tensions between Sam Altman and Adam D’Angelo. It is also not certain what the final shape of the new board will look like. And so on.
We’ll be keeping an eye on these unknowns for you.
But as The Information aptly put: The OpenAI soap opera’s first season is over. And just in time for all involved—even reporters—to take a break for Thanksgiving!
That's all for today!
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