According to sources familiar with the matter, key investors at OpenAI disagreed with the board’s decision to terminate CEO Sam Altman and are advocating for his reinstatement.
According to a Nov. 19 Bloomberg report citing people familiar with the matter, several investors in OpenAI — the artificial intelligence (AI) company behind ChatGPT — are reportedly in contact with its largest shareholder, Microsoft, in an effort to reinstate Altman as CEO.
On Nov. 17, OpenAI announced the removal of Altman as CEO, with its chief technology officer Mira Murati stepping into the position.
In a blog post, the board claimed that Altman’s communication lacked clarity and honesty, making it challenging to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the operations.
Thrive Capital, anticipated to spearhead a tender offer for employee shares, has reportedly not sent the funds yet, and Altman’s departure is poised to impact its course of action.
Reportedly, Thrive wants the board to reengage both Altman and Greg Brockman, its president, who departed on Friday shortly after Altman was removed from the company.
Brockman announced his departure after it was revealed that Altman had been dropped by the board.
“Based on today’s news, I quit,” Brockman declared in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
Following the news, three OpenAI senior researchers, Jakub Pachocki, director of research; Aleksander Madry, head of preparedness; and Szymon Sidor, senior researcher, departed.
