(TechCrunch) Sam Altman is returning to OpenAI as its chief executive, the high-profile AI startup said Wednesday, a dramatic reversal that caps an intense five days of discussions, debates and convincing following the sudden dismissal of Altman last week from the startup he co-founded.
OpenAI, which is the most valuable U.S. startup, said it has reached an “agreement in principle” for Altman’s return. The startup is also reforming its board, eliminating several members who faced intense scrutiny for their decision last week.
Former Salesforce co-chief executive Bret Taylor, former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Larry Summers, and Quora founder Adam D’Angelo will be part of the new board at the AI startup. Taylor will serve as the chair of the board, the startup said.
Microsoft, which has invested over $11 billion in OpenAI and owns about 49% of the startup, was taken aback by OpenAI’s decision last week and rushed to hire Altman to lead a new AI group at the software conglomerate. Greg Brockman, former President of OpenAI, and countless other members of the startup resigned in protest of the earlier OpenAI board’s decision. Brockman, who had also joined Microsoft, said he was also returning to the startup.
In response to OpenAI’s move Wednesday, Altman said: “I love OpenAI, and everything I’ve done over the past few days has been in service of keeping this team and its mission together. when I decided to join Microsoft on Sunday evening, it was clear that was the best path for me and the team. With the new board and with Satya’s support, I’m looking forward to returning to OpenAI, and building on our strong partnership with Microsoft.”
Returning to OpenAI & getting back to coding tonight.
— Greg Brockman (@gdb) November 22, 2023
