Greg Brockman, the co-founder and president of OpenAI, has announced his resignation from the company.
This decision came just hours after Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, was also abruptly fired.
Brockman’s sudden departure adds to the day’s uncertainties at OpenAI, following closely on the heels of its maiden developer conference led by Altman. Earlier, OpenAI had said that Brockman was stepping down as chairman of the board but would remain at the firm.
Brockman, who co-founded OpenAI with Altman, is a close confidant of the former OpenAI chief executive.
In a message to the OpenAI team, Brockman expressed pride in what the company had achieved since its inception in his apartment eight years prior.
He acknowledged the company’s journey through challenging and successful times and its accomplishments against considerable odds.
However, he decided to resign based on recent developments, conveying his best wishes to the team and reaffirming his belief in the mission of creating safe Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) that benefits all of humanity.
After learning today’s news, this is the message I sent to the OpenAI team: https://t.co/NMnG16yFmm pic.twitter.com/8x39P0ejOM
— Greg Brockman (@gdb) November 18, 2023
The circumstances surrounding the departures of both Brockman and Altman remain unclear.
OpenAI, along with Brockman and Microsoft (which owns about half of the company but is not on the board), have not disclosed specific reasons for Altman’s removal.
It was reported that Altman left the firm after a “deliberative review process” by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, affecting its ability to fulfill its responsibilities.
Altman had been a prominent figure and the public face of OpenAI, significantly contributing to the company’s position as a leader in the AI industry. Under his leadership, OpenAI’s offerings became pivotal for numerous startups building upon them.
Despite these changes, Microsoft remains committed to its partnership with OpenAI.
Despite the departure of its leadership, OpenAI remains committed to its mission of creating safe AGI that benefits all of humanity.
The company has not announced who will take over as CEO, but OpenAI chief technology officer Mira Murati is taking over as interim CEO.
