In a surprising move, Microsoft has hired former OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and co-founder Greg Brockman to lead a new advanced artificial intelligence research division. The hires come just days after negotiations for Altman to return as head of OpenAI collapsed.
On Friday, Altman was abruptly fired as CEO of OpenAI, the prominent San Francisco artificial intelligence lab he co-founded in 2015. OpenAI’s board of directors cited a loss of confidence in Altman’s leadership and judgment. The firing shocked the AI community.
Over the weekend, negotiations occurred over Altman’s possible reinstatement as CEO. But OpenAI’s four-person board of directors refused to step aside to allow his return. This led the board to quickly appoint former Twitch CEO Emmett Shear as interim CEO of OpenAI.
The opaque circumstances surrounding Altman’s departure from OpenAI have raised many unanswered questions. What specifically prompted the board to so suddenly remove you as CEO? Why couldn’t the two parties reach an agreement for his return? How will OpenAI move forward under new leadership?
With Altman at OpenAI, Microsoft wasted no time securing his talent alongside co-founder Greg Brockman. On Monday, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella announced that the company had hired Altman and Brockman to lead a new advanced AI research team.
“We are very excited to share the news that Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, along with their colleagues, will join Microsoft to lead a new advanced AI research team,” said Nadella. “We look forward to acting quickly to provide them with the resources necessary for their success.”
The news came just hours after talks to reinstate Altman as CEO of OpenAI failed conclusively. In a social media post, Altman acknowledged that he was joining Microsoft by reposting Nadella’s statement with the message “The mission continues.”
We remain committed to our partnership with OpenAI and are confident in our product roadmap, our ability to continue to innovate with everything we announced at Microsoft Ignite, and to continue supporting our customers and partners. We look forward to meeting Emmett…
– Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) November 20, 2023
Nadella welcomed the hires as an opportunity to further expand Microsoft’s thriving artificial intelligence capabilities. “We’ve learned a lot over the years about how to give founders and innovators space to build independent identities and cultures within Microsoft, including GitHub, Mojang Studios, and LinkedIn,” he responded to Altman. “I look forward to you doing the same.”
Brockman revealed that other key OpenAI researchers would also take on leadership positions in Microsoft’s new AI division. These include Jakub Pachocki, research director at OpenAI, in an unnamed leadership role.
OpenAI research scientist Szymon Sidor and head of coaching Aleksander Madry will also hold leadership roles on Microsoft’s AI team, Brockman said. In what appears to be a brain drain, many other OpenAI employees flooded social media with messages of support for Altman and gratitude for his leadership.
This suggests that more resignations from OpenAI research staff may be coming as Microsoft establishes its new AI research group. By hiring Altman, Brockman and other leading OpenAI scientists, Microsoft will reap enormous benefits from OpenAI’s innovative AI capabilities.
Although details are scarce, reports have emerged that Altman was secretly working on an AI startup, likely causing tension with OpenAI’s board of directors. Dubbed “Project Tigris,” Altman was supposedly developing a chip to power AI systems and compete with Nvidia’s dominant GPUs for AI workloads.
The stealth project was seen as a major conflict of interest by OpenAI’s board of directors, according to sources who spoke to the New York Times. This rift over the AI chip startup may have been the last straw that led the board to fire Altman as CEO.
Altman’s firing also comes amid growing evidence that Microsoft intends to reduce its reliance on Nvidia GPUs for AI research and products. Last week, Microsoft unveiled its own custom-designed AI chip, called Maia, that can train massive AI language models.
Although Microsoft said Maia will not affect its long-standing partnership with Nvidia, the development of its own AI silicon suggests a desire for greater independence. The talents that Altman and OpenAI bring to chip design and AI hardware will be invaluable to Microsoft’s ambitions.
Microsoft still maintains strong financial ties and an exclusive partnership with OpenAI, in which it has invested billions. Nadella said Microsoft remains committed to the partnership under OpenAI’s new executive leadership.
But the poaching by Altman, Brockman and a potentially large number of researchers deals a serious blow to confidence in OpenAI’s brain. Some sources believe OpenAI may struggle to stay at the forefront of AI without many of its top talents.
For Microsoft, the hires signal a consolidation of AI research power under its own roof. With pioneering OpenAI scientists leading Microsoft’s new division, it can accelerate its progress in developing cutting-edge artificial general intelligence.
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Categories: Technology
Source: vtt.edu.vn