The OpenAI board is trying to close the door on a tumultuous chapter that saw its revered CEO Sam Altman fired, promoted and then fired reinstated as CEO in one chaotic period of four days. In one Summary Law firm WilmerHale, published today, concluded that the board failed to recognize that firing the CEO would “destabilize” the company and that it acted without giving Altman an opportunity to respond to the board’s concerns about a ” “loss of trust” between directors and management. The review found that the board had “broad discretion” to fire Altman but that “his conduct did not necessitate his removal.”
The company published the summary of WilmerHale’s findings in a blog post today, but went no further than absolving the board of firing Altman while concluding that the board should not have fired Altman. The published review also refutes speculation that Altman was up to something nefarious, prompting the board to act quickly and remove him. According to the summary, Altman’s firing “was not due to concerns about product security, the pace of development, OpenAI’s finances, or his statements to investors, customers, or business partners.” It was not explained where the “loss of trust” came from or how it led to Altman’s termination from the company.
The board has since recruited new members – all women – and it appears the company is hoping to move forward with a clean slate and a refreshed board.
“We have unanimously concluded that Sam and Greg are the right leaders for OpenAI,” said Bret Taylor, chairman of the OpenAI board, referring to Altman and Greg Brockman, who resigned in protest after the board left Altman fired at a virtual meeting in November. 17, 2023. Brockman returned last year at the same time as Altman and both will now officially rejoin the board, the company said Today.
The independent investigation into the board’s firing of Altman and the duo’s removal from the board included “dozens of interviews” with former OpenAI board members, executives and consultants, the company said in a statement blog entry. Lawyers examined 30,000 documents and evaluated the panel’s actions. “Many OpenAI employees and current and former board members” contributed to the review process, the company said.
“WilmerHale determined that there was a loss of trust between the previous board and Mr. Altman that triggered the events of November 17,” WilmerHale’s summary of findings said.
Altman’s firing caused a stir throughout the technology industry, where Altman was the face of generative AI. OpenAI also has close relationships with Microsoft, which has invested $13 billion in the company. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella openly supported Altman after his ouster. At the time, the OpenAI board simply stated that it “no longer had confidence in its ability to continue to lead OpenAI.” It followed a previous review that found Altman lacked candor with the board, the company said. After the board fired Altman, board chairman Brockman, unaware of what the rest of the board was up to, quit and publicized the news X. Hundreds of employees then wrote an open letter to the board demanding that they be reinstated. However, the latter retained his job as chief scientist and publicly expressed regret over his role in ousting Altman
Overcoming the troubling power struggle at the top coincides with an exciting chapter in which AI experiences a meteoric rise in popularity and appreciation. Open AI was founded in 2015 as a nonprofit organization that owns and controls the for-profit company OpenAI GP LLC.
“We recognize the magnitude of our role in advancing transformative technologies for the benefit of the world,” Taylor said in the company statement.
The company also announced three new board members today: Sue Desmond-Hellman, former CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Nicole Seligman, former President and General Counsel at Sony corporation; and Fidji Simo, CEO and Chairman of Instacart. The appointments could be seen as a counter to earlier criticism that there was a lack of women on the board following Altman’s departure. When he and Brockman rejoined, three board members – Tasha McCauley, Helen Toner and co-founder Ilya Sutskever – left the board. Sutskever remains with the company.
Desmond-Hellman, 66, also serves Pfizer board and previously served as a director on the board of Facebook and Procter & Gamble. Prior to Sony, the firebrand Seligman was a partner in the litigation practice of law firm Williams & Connolly, where she advised President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton. Seligman is chairman of the nominating and corporate governance committee of space exploration company Intuitive Machines and sits on the board of gene therapy developer Meira GTx Holdings and Paramount Global, formerly known as Viacom. Simo is French and was previously vice president and head of the Facebook app. She is also a director on the board of Shopify.