The rapid developments surrounding the resignation of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Chairman Greg Brockman on Friday at the end of the weekend had given the public the impression that the parties to the corporate conflict were ready to negotiate, and the former boss of the startup Altman confirmed that His resignation even included an appearance as a guest at the company headquarters.
Image source: X, Sam Altman
As evidence of his visit to OpenAI headquarters, Sam Altman posted a photo of himself with his temporary passport, saying it was the “first and last time” he used it. edition The information reported that Altman and Brockman were invited to OpenAI’s San Francisco headquarters for talks last Sunday. The invitation came from the company’s interim CEO, Mira Murati, and she informed her subordinates of her decision. Also invited to the discussions was former president and chairman Greg Brockman, who followed Altman from OpenAI on Friday.
Microsoft Corporation, a key investor in this startup that provided the world with the popular generative artificial intelligence system ChatGPT, intervened in the negotiation process. If Altman leads the company again, Microsoft will insist on adding a representative to the OpenAI board, according to sources. As an alternative, a more moderate scenario is being considered, in which a non-voting Microsoft representative delegates oversight powers on the board.
The agency now has Bloomberg released new details about Altman’s initiative to develop his own chip for OpenAI’s needs, which in part led to disagreements in his relationship with the company’s board. The former CEO wanted to create a subsidiary that would focus on developing a Tigris chip that could compete with NVIDIA’s products and reduce OpenAI’s own costs for maintaining its computing infrastructure.
According to sources, Altman was in talks with Middle Eastern investors including Mubadala Investment Company and the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, as well as Japan’s SoftBank Corporation. The latter simultaneously tried to participate in a deal to purchase shares from OpenAI employees, which would have valued the company’s capitalization at $86 billion, but the resignation of management apparently prevented preparations for this deal.
If Altman returns to head OpenAI, he will have to develop projects to develop his own computer accelerator by agreement with the company’s board of directors. Tens of billions of dollars must be raised to meet these needs, so such important decisions are inevitably made by the board. According to outside experts, the search for investors in the Middle East is intended to curb the vigilance of American regulators, who have traditionally been suspicious of Chinese investors but are more positive about cooperation with Middle Eastern countries. In any case, in such a sensitive area, foreign investors can claim up to 10% of the capital of a new startup and do not receive seats on the board of directors. According to unofficial information, Microsoft was also ready to support Altman in his chip development startup, but for now it is more important for him to restore order in the management of OpenAI.
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