Summary

  • OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had been fired by the board for lack of candor; however, Microsoft has now hired Altman and is forming a new "advanced AI" research team.
  • Microsoft will continue to work with OpenAI and its interim CEO Emmett Shear.
  • The leadership of Microsoft's new AI team includes former OpenAI employees, with more names expected to be revealed soon. The specifics of the team's work are yet to be disclosed.

A few days ago, OpenAI's board announced the shock firing of CEO Sam Altman, stating that the executive had not been candid in his communications with the board. CTO Mira Murati was appointed as the interim CEO while the search for a permanent replacement began. However, the news cycle around this topic has been rife with rumors, speculation, and public statements from those involved. Now, in a major twist of events, Microsoft has announced that it is hiring Altman following his ouster, while continuing its partnership with OpenAI.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella revealed that OpenAI co-founders Sam Altman and Greg Brockman will be joining Microsoft to lead a new "advanced AI" research team. Interestingly, the Redmond tech firm will continue to work with OpenAI and its latest interim CEO Emmett Shear - who is a former Twitch CEO. Nadella further sent a welcome message directly to Altman on the social media platform, emphasizing Microsoft's commitment to giving innovators and founders the space and resources they need to excel in their respective fields.

The leadership of the new AI team at Microsoft currently comprises various OpenAI employees who have followed in the footsteps of Altman and Brockman, including Jakub Pachocki, Szymon Sidor, and Aleksander Madry. More names are expected to follow soon.

It will be interesting to see how the relationship between OpenAI and Microsoft is sustained over the new few weeks and months. Rumors have been swirling around that the Redmond firm was not happy with how Altman was let go, which makes sense considering that it has invested billions of dollars in OpenAI, when it was being led by Altman. Multiple reports had previously claimed that some members of the board wanted to re-hire Altman, but that negotiations broke down, and Shear was hired instead. Microsoft hasn't revealed yet what its new advanced AI team will be doing, and it remains to be seen if whatever it does next is as radical as ChatGPT.