The Mystery at the Heart of the OpenAI Chaos
More than three days after OpenAI was thrown into chaos by Sam Altman’s sudden firing from his post as CEO, one big question remains unanswered: Why?
Altman was removed by OpenAI’s nonprofit board through an unconventional governance structure that, as one of the company’s cofounders, he helped to create. It gave a small group of individuals wholly independent of the ChatGPT maker’s core operations the power to dismiss its leadership, in the name of ensuring humanity-first oversight of its AI technology.
The board’s brief and somewhat cryptic statement announcing Altman’s departure said the directors had “concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities.” Altman was replaced by CTO Mira Murati, who was appointed interim CEO. Greg Brockman, like Altman an OpenAI cofounder, was removed from his post as chair of the board and quit the company in solidarity with Altman several hours later.
There have been many twists and turns since Friday, with Altman making a failed attempt to return as CEO, the board replacing Murati as interim CEO with Twitch cofounder Emmett Shear, Microsoft announcing it would hire Altman and Brockman, and almost every OpenAI employee threatening to quit unless Altman returned.
None of them have shed much light on what Altman did or did not do that triggered the board to eject him. An OpenAI staff member speaking on condition of anonymity on Monday says that the board has communicated virtually nothing about its thinking throughout the crisis.
