(WASHINGTON) A new twist in the world of artificial intelligence (AI): Microsoft announced on Monday that it is hiring Sam Altman, the co-founder and former number one of OpenAI, the young firm behind ChatGPT, whose dismissal came as a surprise on Friday. .
Shortly after, former Twitch boss Emmett Shear announced that he had accepted the interim No. 1 position at OpenAI.
Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, both co-founders of OpenAI, “will join other Microsoft colleagues to lead a new research group in AI,” its boss Satya Nadella wrote in X.
“The mission continues,” responded Sam Altman, considered the star of Silicon Valley at the age of 38, on the same social network.
“We’re going to build something new, and it’s going to be incredible,” added Greg Brockman at X, who announced recruitment for this new project at Microsoft along with several other key OpenAI contributors, whom he named.
“We remain committed to our partnership with OpenAI and are confident in the roadmap planned for our product,” said Mr. Nadella added that his company has invested several billion dollars in the computing technologies needed by OpenAI and has integrated the technology into its own products. , such as the Bing search engine.
Emmett Shear, for his part, clarified in X that his decision was made “within hours”, referring to the “opportunity of a lifetime”.
“I accepted this position because I believe OpenAI is one of the most important companies today. When the directors’ association informed me of the situation and asked me to take up this role, I did not take the decision lightly,” he commented.
He plans to launch an independent investigation within 30 days to shed light on Sam Altman’s firing and the turmoil at the young company.
The announcements come after a tumultuous weekend: The OpenAI board of directors surprised the OpenAI board of directors on Friday by announcing the immediate dismissal of Sam Altman “following the board’s deliberative review process, which concluded that he had never been candid in his communications with the board, hindering his ability to carry out his duties.”
She added that the body no longer “has confidence in its ability to lead OpenAI.”
“Lack of Transparency”
Several executives of the company, founded in late 2015, have announced their resignations, most notably Greg Brockman, chairman of the board of directors.
“OpenAI is nothing without its contributors,” several employees also published on Monday X.
Microsoft and Thrive are OpenAI’s two biggest backers, but “other investors in the company are supporting their efforts,” the newspaper added.
The The New York Times Published items of the same content. But, according to several media, the board of directors confirmed its decision on Sunday.
The departure is “the only way to advance and protect OpenAI’s mission,” the board of directors (CA) wrote in a memo to its employees on Sunday evening. The New York Times Broadcast during night from Sunday to Monday.
“Sam’s conduct and his lack of transparency in his interactions with the board of directors undermined his ability to effectively lead the company in the manner he mandated,” the CA added in a note cited by the newspaper.
The first version of ChatGPT to go live on November 30, 2022 has started the race in artificial intelligence. Widely considered a revolution comparable to the advent of the Internet, generative AI makes it possible to produce texts, lines of code, images and sounds in everyday language upon simple request.
This raises serious concerns, particularly about the dangers to democracy (mass disinformation) or employment (replacement occupations).
