OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and co-founder Greg Brockman were sacked from the board on Friday (Nov 17) in a “quick” call scheduled via Google Meet, according to Brockman. Brockman took to his official X account on Saturday (Nov 18), saying he and Sam are “shocked and saddened” by their sudden removal from the board and are “still trying to figure out” what occurred. “Last night, Sam received a text from Ilya asking to meet at noon on Friday.” Except for Greg, the entire board was present when Sam joined a Google Meet. “Ilya informed Sam that he was being fired and that the news would be made public very soon,” Brockman wrote.
Ilya Sutskever is an OpenAI board member and co-founder. What the board did today has stunned and saddened Sam and me. Let us begin by thanking everyone at OpenAI who has helped us along the way, including our customers, investors, and everyone who has reached out. “At 12:19 p.m., Greg received a text from Ilya requesting a brief call. Ilya sent a Google Meet link at 12:23 p.m. Greg was informed that he was being removed from the board (but that he was still important to the company and would continue in his function) and that Sam had been sacked. Around the same time, OpenAI published a blog post,” he stated.
Taking to X, Sam Altman said that it was “a weird experience” in different ways
“As far as we know, the management team was made aware of this shortly after, other than Mira (Murati) who found out the night prior,” Brockman added. He further said that the “outpouring of support” was really nice and that they would be okay. “Greater things coming soon,” he stated. Taking to X, Sam Altman said that it was “a weird experience” in different ways. “Today was a weird experience in many ways. but one unexpected one is that it has been sort of like reading your own eulogy while you’re still alive. The outpouring of love is awesome,” he stated.
The board of directors of OpenAI, which is supported by Microsoft, said on Friday that Sam Altman will step down as CEO and will no longer serve on the board. “Mr Altman’s departure follows a thorough review by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, impeding its ability to carry out its responsibilities.” “The board no longer believes in his ability to lead OpenAI,” said an official statement. Meanwhile, OpenAI said that Mira Murati, the company’s chief technology officer, will act as interim CEO.
