It's been more than three months since OpenAI's board temporarily fired Sam Altman, the high-profile artificial intelligence company's chief executive officer, but the board has decided that such a dramatic Questions remain about the exact reasons for this action.
A report from an outside law firm is expected to be released in the coming days and could shed more light on the board's decisions and the chaotic five days leading up to Mr. Altman's return to the company.
But as anticipation for the report has grown, previously unreported details have emerged about the role OpenAI Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati played in Altman's ouster.
Murati wrote a personal memo to Altman, raising questions about management and sharing his concerns with the board. The move helped advance the board's decision to step down, said people familiar with board discussions, who asked not to be identified due to the sensitive nature of personnel matters.
Around the same time, OpenAI co-founder and chief scientist Ilya Satskeva expressed similar concerns, citing Altman's history of manipulative behavior. Both executives spoke of a ruthless relationship with Mr. Altman. It was not clear whether he gave specific examples, but executives said he sometimes created a toxic work environment, firing executives who did not support his decisions.
Murati's interactions with the board provide insight into the problems festering at OpenAI's senior levels, but both executives publicly supported Altman's return to the company.
WilmerHale, the law firm conducting the investigation, is expected to conclude its proceedings soon. The company plans to announce a new board of directors at the same time, some people said. Several directors left the board after Mr. Altman returned in November.
OpenAI spokeswoman Hannah Wong said in a statement that the company's senior management team, which Murati led when he was interim chief executive, unanimously called for Altman to return, and the open letter said 95% of He said he signed it. OpenAI employees.
“His strong support from his team confirms that he is an effective CEO who is open to different perspectives, willing to solve complex challenges, and shows consideration for his team,” Wong said. .
Altman declined to comment. Murati did not respond to requests for comment. Sutskever's lawyer said claims that he lobbied the board were “completely false.”
(The New York Times sued OpenAI and Microsoft in December for copyright infringement of news content related to AI systems.)
Since November, OpenAI and its investors have been scrambling to contain the fallout from the incident that threatens to upend one of the technology industry's most important startups. OpenAI was valued at more than $80 billion in its last funding round.
Many of OpenAI's 700-plus remaining employees, many of whom threatened to quit when Altman was fired, hope to forget the events of November. (Some employees refer to that period as “the blip.”)
But others are hopeful that WilmerHale's investigation will shed more light on the events surrounding Altman's firing. It is unclear whether the full text or summary of the report will be made available to the public.
At the time of Altman's firing, OpenAI's six-member board of directors also included Dr. Sutskever. Helen Toner, an AI researcher at a think tank at Georgetown University. Adam DiAngelo, former Facebook executive. Greg Brockman, co-founder and president of the company; Tasha McCauley, Adjunct Senior Management Scientist, Rand Corporation; And Mr. Altman.
As a condition of Altman's return, management agreed to reorganize OpenAI's board of directors to include more diverse and independent directors. OpenAI's six-member board of directors has been reduced to an interim three-member board. Former Salesforce and Facebook executive Brett Taylor joined as chairman of the board and helped appoint new directors. Former Treasury Secretary Lawrence H. Summers also participated. Mr. D'Angelo will remain on the board.
Mr. Murati contacted some members of the board in October to express concerns about Mr. Altman's leadership, the people said.
She described what some believe to be Mr. Altman's strategy, which involves manipulating executives to get what he wants. First, Murati said Altman will tell people what they want to hear, engage them and support his decisions. He will seek to undermine the credibility of those who challenge him if they do not follow his plan or take too long to make a decision, the people said.
Mr. Murati previously told the board that he had sent Mr. Altman a personal memo outlining some of his concerns about Mr. Altman's conduct, and shared some of the details of that memo with the board, the people said. It is said that he shared it with
Around the same time, in October, Mr. Sutskever approached board members and expressed similar concerns about Mr. Altman, the people said.
Some members of the board feared that if Mr. Altman's conduct was not addressed, Mr. Murati and Dr. Sutskever would leave the company. They also became concerned that the company would lose talent if executives left.
There were other factors in this decision as well. Some members were concerned about the creation of OpenAI Startup Fund, a venture fund launched by Altman. Unlike a typical corporate investment fund, which is a legal extension of a company, Altman retained legal ownership of the OpenAI fund and raised the money from outside limited partners.
The OpenAI Fund used the money to invest in other artificial intelligence startups. Some members of the board became concerned that Altman had used the funds to avoid accountability from OpenAI's nonprofit governance structure. They clashed with Mr. Altman last year over legal ownership and control over the fund.
Axios previously reported on Altman's control of the OpenAI fund.
Board members began discussing next steps after being approached by Murati and Dr. Satskever. The board planned to appoint Murati as interim chief executive officer by mid-November and proceed with the search for a new CEO, people familiar with the matter said. The board of directors fired Mr. Altman on November 17th.
In the days that followed, Mr. Altman waged a public battle to regain his position, using a combination of public pressure and powerful allies in Silicon Valley to push for his return. Most of OpenAI's 770 employees threatened to quit unless he was reappointed as CEO. Mr. Murati and Dr. Sutskever immediately and publicly expressed their support for Mr. Altman's return to the company. According to some sources, Dr. Satskever has not yet returned to normal work at the company.
After five days of back and forth public appearances, Altman returned to work.
