OpenAI Fires Its CEO Sam Altman, Saying "Board No Longer Has Confidence" in His Leadership

OpenAI, the developer of the most popular AI tool, ChatGPT, announced last Friday that its Co-Founder Sam Altman has stepped down from his role as CEO as well as a member of its Board of Directors. The company's Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati has been appointed as interim CEO until the Board finds a new candidate.

"Mr. Altman's departure follows a deliberative review process by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities. The board no longer has confidence in his ability to continue leading OpenAI," the firm's Board of Directors explained in a press release.

Altman confirmed his departure in a post on X, a social media platform formerly known as Twitter, "I loved my time at OpenAI. it was transformative for me personally, and hopefully the world a little bit. Most of all I loved working with such talented people. Will have more to say about what's next later."

Also, Altman said that departure was a strange experience for him, sort of like "reading your own eulogy while you're still alive."

In addition, Greg Brockman left his role as Chairman of the Board on the same day and disputed the board's decision in an online post, saying he and Altman were "shocked and saddened" by the abrupt firing.

Altman co-founded the non-profit OpenAI with Elon Musk in 2015 and served as CEO since 2019. During his tenure, he successfully led the company to the forefront in November 2022 with the launch of ChatGPT, a large language model that impacted multiple sectors, and has become the leader in the field of generative AI. Additionally, Altman is also a co-founder of Wordcoin, an iris biometric cryptocurrency project.

Mira Murati, the CTO and the current interim CEO of OpenAI, has been with the company for more than five years. The Board expressed confidence in her ability to lead during the transition, citing her "long tenure and close engagement with all aspects of the company."

​Notablely, Altman owns no shares in OpenAI. The company noted in a press release that "the majority of the board is independent, and the independent directors do not hold equity in OpenAI."