In November last year, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was briefly ousted from the company he founded. Three months later, the names of the people who influenced that decision finally came to the public.
The New York Times, on Wednesday, named CTO Mira Murati and co-founder Ilya Sutskever are potentially responsible to the removal of Altman and the chaos that ensued.
According to the report, Murati has been noted to express concerns about the CEO to the board, as well as sending a private memo regarding inquiries over Altman's management.
Murati allegedly accused Altman of "manipulating executives to get what he wanted" and then undermining them if they opposed his proposals.
This was also during the same time Sutskever cited his worries over Altman's "manipulative behavior." Sutskever is among the executives who voted to oust their CEO, a decision he "deeply regrets."
It is worth noting that both Murati and Sutskever declared support for Altman amid demands from staff to reinstate the former CEO. Both executives stepped down when Altman came back to OpenAI.
Sutskever's lawyer denied the NY Times report, saying that it is "categorically false." Murati's and Altman's teams did not comment.
Sam Altman's Questionable Management Brought to Light
The new documents and reports about Altman's management follow a growing list of concerns as to why the founder of the world's leading AI firm was truly ousted.
Several people familiar with the matter, as well as legal documents indicated Altman to be allocating OpenAI investments to companies he has earlier financed.
The Securities and Exchange Commission is currently probing the company's internal communications whether Altman intentionally misled OpenAI's investors.
WilmerHale, the law firm investigating the company following the ousting, is set to release its review in the coming days, along with the decision on who will be members of OpenAI's board.
OpenAI is currently governed by a three-person board with "Independent Directors" Brey Taylor, Larry Summers, and Adam D'Angelo. Taylor serves as the chairperson.
Related Article : OpenAI Agreed to Invest $51 Million to CEO Sam Altman-Backed AI Chip Startup, Documents Reveal
OpenAI Investigation: Why it Matters?
As OpenAI continues to lead the AI industry, the inner workings of its top brass reflect how the company will operate in the future, particularly its approach to the growing dangers of its technologies.
The AI firm is already been criticized before for releasing AI models with critical flaws and vulnerabilities as safety tests remain mostly within the company's closed doors.
This is in addition to reports, including from OpenAI itself, confirming that its technology is being used by bad actors for cyberattacks.
With regulations on AI use and development still years behind, the people who will be sitting on OpenAI's board play a huge role in the future of AI in an ever-increasing digitized world.
