SAN FRANCISCO – In the latest twist in the saga of ChatGPT creator OpenAI, Microsoft has hired its ousted chief executive Sam Altman and former president Greg Brockman to lead a new advanced artificial intelligence (AI) research unit.

Mr Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, OpenAI’s biggest investor, also signalled that more OpenAI employees were joining them.

“We’re extremely excited to share the news that Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, together with colleagues, will be joining Microsoft to lead a new advanced AI research team,” he said in posts on X, formerly known as Twitter, and LinkedIn.

“We look forward to moving quickly to provide them with the resources needed for their success.”

The move came after the board of directors at OpenAI stood by its decision to push out Mr Altman, according to an internal memo sent to the company’s staff on Nov 19.

Instead of reinstating Mr Altman, OpenAI named Mr Emmett Shear, a former executive at Twitch, as the new interim CEO, pushing aside Ms Mira Murati, a long-time OpenAI executive who was named interim CEO after Mr Altman’s ouster.

The board said Mr Shear has a “unique mix of skills, expertise and relationships that will drive OpenAI forward”, according to the memo.

“The board firmly stands by its decision as the only path to advance and defend the mission of OpenAI,” said the memo, referring to Mr Altman’s ouster on Nov 17.

It was signed by each of the four directors on the company’s board – Mr Adam D’Angelo, Ms Helen Toner, Dr Ilya Sutskever and Ms Tasha McCauley.

“Put simply, Sam’s behaviour and lack of transparency in his interactions with the board undermined the board’s ability to effectively supervise the company in the manner it was mandated to do,” the memo said.

The decision to hire Mr Shear, 38, was seen as a stinging rebuke to investors led by Microsoft and Thrive Capital, who had urged the board to step down and wanted Mr Altman back at the helm. 

Some OpenAI employees also pledged to quit OpenAI or join Mr Altman’s new potential venture if the board did not relent.

Microsoft, which has invested more than US$13 billion (S$17.4 billion) in OpenAI, learnt of Mr Altman’s exit only one minute before it was announced, while other investors discovered that he had been forced out via social media.

The departure of Mr Altman, 38, also drew attention to a rift in the AI community between people who believe AI is the most important new technology since Web browsers and others who worry that moving too fast to develop it could be dangerous.

OpenAI’s chief scientist, Dr Sutskever, in particular, was worried that Mr Altman was too focused on building the business while not paying enough attention to the dangers of AI.

The board’s decision to remove Mr Altman was a shock to industry allies and rank-and-file employees who supported the charismatic co-founder.

Silicon Valley investors and tech executives expressed their support of Mr Altman and Mr Brockman, who had resigned in protest.

By the evening of Nov 17, Mr Altman was pitching a new AI start-up to investors and planned to start the company with Mr Brockman.

Since OpenAI released its hit ChatGPT chatbot almost a year ago, AI has captured the public’s imagination, with hopes that it could be used for important work like drug research or to help teach children.

But some AI scientists and political leaders worry about its risks, such as jobs getting automated out of existence or autonomous warfare that grows beyond human control.

OpenAI has been the gravitational centre of that discussion, along with its former CEO, who has done more than anyone over the past year to make AI intelligence a mainstream topic.

The AI company has an unusual governance structure. It is controlled by the board of a non-profit that can decide the company’s leadership, and its investors have no formal way of influencing decisions.

The lack of details about the reasons behind Mr Altman’s ouster emboldened his supporters.

Some argued that the non-profit board could no longer support the business that OpenAI had become – one with 700 employees, numerous customers and corporate partnerships that is on track to post US$1 billion in annual revenue. REUTERS, NYTIMES