It’s been a tumultuous weekend for OpenAI and anyone who follows the field of artificial intelligence. After the OpenAI board fired CEO Sam Altman on Friday, investors who’d been taken off guard by the move raced to reinstate him.
On Sunday afternoon, Altman was back in the OpenAI headquarters, Bloomberg reported, and the decision to reinstate him could be made shortly. Altman shared a photo of himself on X wearing a guest badge and making a face, writing, “first and last time i ever wear one of these.”
But even if he is, questions remain about why the board fired him in the first place. It gave only vague reasons on Friday. Among those wanting to know is Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who wrote on X: “Given the risk and power of advanced AI, the public should be informed of why the board felt they had to take such drastic action.”
And AI expert Gary Marcus worried it did not bode well that the OpenAI board—presumably in control of the capped-profit company and with an eye on the nonprofit mission—was overpowered as investors raced to get Altman back in his role.
OpenAI Chief Operating Officer Brad Lightcap told Bloomberg, “we have had multiple conversations with the board to try to better understand the reasons and process behind their decision,” which took him and others at the company by surprise.
According to sources Bloomberg spoke with, among the new board members will Bret Taylor, the former co-CEO of Salesforce.
This is a breaking story an will be updated.
