Former OpenAI boss Sam Altman will join Microsoft
- Reference: 1700478692
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2023/11/20/ex_openai_boss_sam_altman_to_join_microsoft/
- Source link:
Altman was abruptly ousted from OpenAI on Friday and was followed through the doors by several OpenAI members, including Brockman. After a frenzied weekend of speculation, it appears that Microsoft [1]has scooped up the team and tipped them into an AI research unit for which Altman will serve as CEO.
Nadella opened this morning by [2]insisting that Microsoft remains committed to OpenAI - after all, it has poured billions into the company. However, it isn't easy to see how Microsoft will keep both plates spinning after opening its doors to Altman and other former OpenAI staffers.
[3]
OpenAI's reasons for [4]ejecting Altman remain unclear. Under his leadership, the company has seen its value skyrocket and, according to [5]reports , was in talks to sell existing employees' shares at a $86 billion valuation. It's hard to regard that deal as looking anything other than uncertain following the sudden departure of several top executives.
[6]
[7]
Beginning with the abrupt removal of Altman, the weekend continued with the departure of fellow OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman and then rumors that perhaps Altman might be asked back, or maybe not. Then former CTO Mira Murati briefly became interim CEO before former Twitch CEO Emmet Shear [8]took up the chalice this morning.
At this rate, we will all get to be interim CEO of OpenAI before long.
[9]
It is not clear if Murati will be joining Altman at Microsoft. We will update as things develop.
As for where this leaves Microsoft, the answer is between a rock and a hard place. The Windows vendor has bet big on the application of AI, invested billions into OpenAI, and owns a substantial chunk of the company. It will be interesting to watch how Nadella intends to manage Microsoft's relationship with OpenAI while opening its arms to the company's former CEO – who was dismissed under mysterious circumstances.
[10]OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's ejection sparks theories as odd as some ChatGPT output
[11]OpenAI pauses ChatGPT Plus sign-ups as it 'hits capacity'
[12]Control Altman delete: OpenAI fires CEO, chairman quits
[13]Microsoft hits Alt+F4 on internal ChatGPT access over security jitters, irony ensues
As for Shear, he posted that he has a three-point plan for the next 30 days: setting up an independent investigation to report on what led us to where we are now, talking to customers and employees, and finally reforming the management team.
Shear said: "Depending on the results [of] everything we learn from these, I will drive changes in the organization — up to and including pushing strongly for significant governance changes if necessary. I will be rolling these out as they become clear over the 30 day period.
"OpenAI's stability and success are too important to allow turmoil to disrupt them like this. I will endeavor to address the key concerns as well, although in many cases I believe it may take longer than a month to achieve true progress."
[14]
Seeing how things have gone over the last few days, 30 days seems an ambitious tenure for an OpenAI executive. ®
Get our [15]Tech Resources
[1] https://twitter.com/satyanadella/status/1726516824597258569
[2] https://twitter.com/satyanadella/status/1726509045803336122
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2ZVuQvhbZGazQGCb@ViFGOAAAAE4&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2023/11/17/openais_board_of_directors_fire/
[5] https://www.reuters.com/technology/openai-talks-sell-shares-86-billion-valuation-bloomberg-news-2023-10-18/
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZVuQvhbZGazQGCb@ViFGOAAAAE4&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZVuQvhbZGazQGCb@ViFGOAAAAE4&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://twitter.com/eshear/status/1726526112019382275
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZVuQvhbZGazQGCb@ViFGOAAAAE4&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2023/11/19/sam_altman_openai_depature_theories/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2023/11/15/openai_pauses_chatgpt_plus_signups/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2023/11/17/openais_board_of_directors_fire/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2023/11/10/microsoft_blocks_chatgpt/
[14] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZVuQvhbZGazQGCb@ViFGOAAAAE4&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[15] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Probably gave ChatGPT the data and asked it to give it's opinion, and they acted on it.
"former CTO briefly became interim CEO before former Twitch CEO took up the chalice"
[1]OpenAI boardroom meeting secretly recorded and uploaded to YouTube .
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qv64gSHZJl8
Microsoft's investment was mainly in kind
As I understand it the majority of Microsoft's investment was not in form of a transfer of money but in the form of donated computing capacity at Azure. Even if OpenAI were to tank, MS wouldn't have lost that investment.
What happens now is interesting. I don't get the impression Altman was the brains behind OpenAI, he was the smooth talking figure head (who converted the existing non-profit into an investment vehicle), not the scientific brain. It will depend on how many scientists he can persuade him to follow him to MS whether it has a chance of taking off. Meanwhile MS could use access to its computing capacity to put pressure on OpenAI.
Re: Microsoft's investment was mainly in kind
Well he did convince those scientists to sign on to a startup in return for massive future pay out, which was suddenly jeopardized (and now cut by as much as 50%). They'll follow that promise if he can repeat it while he's now I guess at Microsoft. If he really is an employee of Microsoft he, as someone who ran Y Combinator as effectively as Graham, I'm sure will finagle some similarly remunerative way to incentivise colleagues to follow him or they'll stay at OpenAI. And maybe that's not such a bad deal after all, so someone who joined in year three will only cash out 5M instead of 10M, but the alternatives are far more risky. I doubt openAI will fail to cash out high enough for stock-incentivizes employees to have leveled up in the silicon valley skunkworks.
An Elisa Program
An Elisa Program by any other name is still an Elisa Program.
How much???!
> OpenAI's reasons for ejecting Altman remain unclear. Under his leadership, the company has seen its value skyrocket and, according to reports, was in talks to sell existing employees' shares at a $86 billion valuation. It's hard to regard that deal as looking anything other than uncertain following the sudden departure of several top executives.
Sounds like a pump-and-dump of the latest Big Tech Bubble to me.. Has Microsoft sold its OpenAI stake yet? Meanwhile I wouldn't be surprised if Sam Altman -Fried and chums are shorting their own stock..
Re: How much???!
It isn't a publicly traded company, you can't short it. Or sell it.
You hold on to it and hope it IPOs in the future and you make your money that way.
Microsoft has scooped up the team and tipped them into an AI research unit
Please give a big welcome to our new AI executives Bing Altman and Bob Brockman!
Sorry, you've just been hired, what do you mean you're not happy with being subject to our AI brand naming decisions?
We're DOOOOOOOOOMED
You just put Ex Machina in charge of microsoft. You people seriously don't give a flip about anything or anyone. You WANT the borg hive mind. You WANT to destroy the universe. You WANT to devour and extinguish all life. The lack of vision and complete self absorption in charge of humanities future is ASTONISHING.
Nadella damn fast
Microsoft is in good hands, it seems.
Smart move by Satya
Seems like a brilliant move by Satya.
For better or worse the near term stock price is tied to ChatGPT.
Kept the leadership in the Microsoft orbit and still has connections to Open AI.
Stock was down as much as $10 after the initial dismissal and now is up in the pre-market.
That's why he's the CEO.
Re: Smart move by Satya
It seems that around 500 members of OpenAI staff are threatening to resign.
While Microsoft might want to take a proportion of them onto its books, I can't help feeling that some of the other OpenAI stakeholders might be carefully reading their shareholder agreements.
It's probably also not ultimately in Microsoft's interest if the expertise gets fragmented in a hiring frenzy that might follow an OpenAI implosion.
I'm inclined to reserve judgment on his wisdom for now.
AGI or not AGI? That is the question.
My guess is that the board feel that OpenAI (probably GPT 5) has met their threshold for Artificial General Intelligence(AGI) and Sam wasn't forthcoming with that information. Apparently their deal with Microsoft doesn't include sharing AGI, so they wouldn't share GPT5 with Microsoft.
The OpenAI board kept referring back to their mission of helping all of humanity.
Given Sam is now joining Microsoft...the plot thickens.
Resignation Threat Letter
Hmm... It looks like either way, MS is coming out with a capable AI team, perhaps working for them, or perhaps with a >50% share of OpenAI. Pretty interesting!
"a three-point plan for the next 30 days: ...talking to customers and employees, ..."
Yes, talking to customers and employees is such a drag but you've got to do it sometime and it's only 30 days.
And the latest news …
appears to be that 500 OpenAI (current as of the time I'm typing this) employees have signed an open letter saying "Altman back, existing board gone, or we'll probably walk after Altman".
Musk just lost the "incompetent management of a company" crown.
Did they ask ChatGPT to advise them on boardroom politics?