OpenAI reinstates Sam Altman to its board, says it has ‘full confidence
OpenAI is reinstating CEO Sam Altman to its board of directors and said it has “full confidence” in his leadership after an outside investigation into the turmoil that led the company to abruptly fire and rehire him in November.
OpenAI said the investigation by the law firm WilmerHale concluded that Altman’s ouster was a “consequence of a breakdown in the relationship and loss of trust”between Altman and the prior board.
The ChatGPT maker also said it has added three women to its board of directors: Dr. Sue Desmond-Hellman, a former CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Nicole Seligman, a former Sony general counsel; and Instacart CEO Fidji Simo.
The actions are a way for the San Francisco-based artificial intelligence company to show investors and customers that it is trying to move past theinternal conflicts that nearly destroyed it last yearand made global headlines.
“I’m pleased this whole thing is over,” Altman told reporters Friday, adding that he’s been disheartened to see people leaking information to try to “pit us against each other” and demoralise the team. At the same time, he said he’s learned from the experience and apologised for a dispute with a former board member he could have handled “with more grace and care.”
For more than three months, OpenAI said little about what led its then-board of directors to fire Altman on Nov. 17. An announcement that day said Altman was “not consistently candid in his communications” in a way that hindered the board’s ability to exercise its responsibilities. He also was kicked off the board, along with its chairman, Greg Brockman, who responded by quitting his job as the company’s president.
