In a stunning turn of events, Sam Altman, the former leader of OpenAI, has officially announced his return to the artificial intelligence research organisation, capping off a tumultuous weekend of high-stakes negotiations and internal strife.
The saga began when Altman, after a rejection from OpenAI’s board in his initial bid to return to the startup, agreed to move to Microsoft, the financial backer of OpenAI. He was slated to lead a new research team at the tech giant.
However, a swift and unexpected reversal occurred on Tuesday night, as Altman confirmed his return to OpenAI.
The rapid developments unfolded after Altman’s first attempt to reclaim his position was thwarted by the appointment of ex-Twitch boss Emmett Shear as interim CEO on Sunday. Shear, in a post on platform X, expressed relief at the late-night outcome on Tuesday, revealing that it followed approximately “72 very intense hours of work.”
Altman’s dismissal had triggered a wave of uncertainty for both OpenAI and Microsoft, prompting a proactive response from the latter to hire Altman and Greg Brockman, the president of the startup. Brockman, who had resigned following Altman’s ousting, announced his return to the coding realm in a post on X.
The upheaval within OpenAI reached a critical point on Monday when almost the entire staff, numbering over 700, threatened to leave unless the board stepped down and reinstated Altman and Brockman.
