Altman Returns Five Days After OpenAI Dismissal... Full Board Overhaul Expected (Comprehensive)

"Altman Likely to Join MS Board as Well"

Sam Altman. [Photo by Reuters]

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, is returning to OpenAI just five days after being abruptly fired by the board. The OpenAI board is expected to be completely reshuffled along with Altman's return, and it is reported that Microsoft (MS), the major shareholder of OpenAI, is likely to join the board as well.

On the 21st (local time), OpenAI announced through its official X (formerly Twitter) account that "Altman has reached a principal agreement (in principle) to rejoin OpenAI alongside a new board including Brett Taylor, former CEO of Salesforce, and Larry Summers, former U.S. Treasury Secretary." Adam D’Angelo, CEO of Quora, who had opposed Altman’s return until the last moment, will also remain on the board. The chairmanship of the board will be held by former CEO Taylor.

When asked what "in principle agreement" means, an OpenAI spokesperson stated, "There is nothing further to confirm at this time."

Former CEO Taylor is a professional executive who previously served as chairman of Twitter’s board. Taylor is known to have been recommended as a board candidate by Altman. Larry Summers, former Treasury Secretary, is a Harvard University professor who served as the 71st U.S. Treasury Secretary and the 27th president of Harvard University.

With Altman’s return to OpenAI, the "Altman firing incident" comes to an end after five days. Altman wrote on his X account that day, "I look forward to returning to OpenAI." He added, "I love OpenAI, and everything I have done over the past few days was to protect our team and mission. My decision to join MS last Sunday was because it was clearly the best path for me and the team."

He further stated, "With the support of the new OpenAI board and Satya Nadella, CEO of MS, I look forward to returning to OpenAI and building a strong partnership with MS."

A source familiar with the OpenAI board said the sole mission of the new board members is to form a board of up to nine members to restructure OpenAI’s governance. According to IT media The Verge citing sources, MS is highly likely to take one of the nine board seats alongside Altman.

MS CEO Satya Nadella expressed his welcome immediately after the news of Altman’s return to OpenAI, saying, "I am encouraged by the changes in the board." He emphasized, "I believe this (Altman’s return) is the first step toward stable and well-informed effective governance," and added, "I agreed that Altman and Taylor will play a crucial role in OpenAI’s continued prosperity and mission fulfillment."

The OpenAI board plunged the global tech industry into chaos on the 17th when it dismissed Altman and appointed a new interim CEO. OpenAI only stated that Altman was fired because "he did not communicate candidly," leading to rampant speculation about the sudden dismissal. Industry insiders view this crisis as stemming from the inherent limitations of OpenAI, which started as a nonprofit organization with the mission to create beneficial AI for humanity rather than shareholders, and the failure to balance the rapid commercialization pressure experienced by Altman after the success of ChatGPT.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.