Sam Altman set to rejoin OpenAI’s board alongside three new directors

WEB DESK: OpenAI made waves on Friday with the announcement that CEO Sam Altman will be returning to the board, months after a contentious boardroom episode resulted in his dismissal and subsequent reinstatement.

An internal investigation, initiated in the aftermath of Altman’s abrupt departure, concluded that he had been wrongly fired.

Joining Altman on the revamped board are three new directors: Sue Desmond-Hellmann, former CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Nicole Seligman, former president of Sony Entertainment; and Fidji Simo, CEO of Instacart.

This new lineup joins Ex-Salesforce co-CEO Bret Taylor and former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, who were brought in to stabilize the board following the November 2023 turmoil.

Microsoft’s inclusion as an observer on OpenAI’s board during the same period led to criticism and a lawsuit from Elon Musk, a co-founder of OpenAI. Musk, who departed the project in 2015, contested the move, complicating the company’s dynamics.

Bret Taylor, the OpenAI board chair, expressed enthusiasm about the appointments, stating, “I am excited to welcome Sue, Nicole, and Fidji to the OpenAI Board of Directors. Their experience and leadership will ensure that we pursue OpenAI’s mission of ensuring artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity.”

Quora CEO Adam D’Angelo remains the sole holdover from the previous board that initially decided to terminate Altman.

Altman, a key figure in the recent artificial intelligence surge, faced an unexpected dismissal without a clear explanation.

The move triggered a potential mass exodus of the company’s 700 employees, later averted by Microsoft’s offer of employment, prompting Altman’s reinstatement.

An internal investigation by the new board, assisted by law firm WilmerHale, reviewed over 30,000 documents and concluded that Altman and President Greg Brockman are the right leaders for OpenAI.

Despite being a generative AI pioneer, OpenAI faces heightened competition from Google, Meta, and startups like Anthropic, Musk’s xAI, and French company Mistral.

Legal challenges from Musk, alleging a breach of OpenAI’s original nonprofit status, add complexity, along with a lawsuit from The New York Times over the alleged illegal use of its articles to train models, raising concerns about intellectual property and fair use.