Last year at OpenAI, there was an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow CEO Sam Altman - now former board members are revealing additional information about what prompted their actions.
In The Ted AI Show podcast, one of the former board members of OpenAI, Helen Toner, shared that Altman did not inform them about the launch of ChatGPT until November 2022.
"We were not informed in advance," Toner said. "And we found out about ChatGPT from Twitter."
Toner, who currently works as Director of Strategy at the Center for Security and Emerging Technology at Georgetown, also noted that Altman repeatedly "concealed or distorted" information, making it difficult for the OpenAI board to function.
"Sam did not inform the board that he owned a startup fund of OpenAI, although he constantly claimed to be an independent board member with no financial interests in the company," Toner said.
According to her, Altman's actions "made it difficult for the board to trust him," and "serious discussions were held about his dismissal until October 2023."
In response to Toner's comments, current Chairman of the Board of OpenAI and Salesforce Co-CEO Bret Taylor said:
"We are disappointed that Mrs. Toner continues to bring up these issues. An independent review of the decision to dismiss Altman found that it was not based on concerns about product safety, development pace, OpenAI's finances, or its statements to investors, clients, or business partners."
Until now, the specific reasons for Altman's sudden removal have not been disclosed. In March, Sam (with the involvement of Microsoft, which invested billions in the startup) returned to his position and now works with an updated board lineup including Bret Taylor, OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman, economist Larry Summers, Instacart CEO and former Meta head Fidji Simo, former Sony executive Nicole Seligman, and former CEOs of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Dr. Sue Desmond-Hellmann.
A few weeks earlier, OpenAI's Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever, who was one of those who led the "rebellion" against Altman, left the company, but later apologized for his mistaken actions and signed a letter demanding Sam's return. Sam Altman himself, in a farewell note, wrote that it is difficult for him to "lose a good friend and one of the greatest minds of our generation."
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