Microsoft broke a Wall Street opening with a new record when they announced the hiring of co-founder and former number one of OpenAI, Sam Altman. The company’s stock rose 1.6% in early trading, and is now trading around 1% after the new development in the world of artificial intelligence. Altman was dismissed from OpenAI, which came as a surprise last Friday. Shortly after, former Twitch boss Emmett Shear announced that he had accepted the position as OpenAI’s interim number one.
Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, both co-founders of OpenAI, will join Microsoft, along with other colleagues, to lead a new artificial intelligence research team. The CEO, Satya Nadella, wrote on X that “the mission continues.” Altman reacted saying, “We are going to build something new and it will be incredible.”
Emmett Shear told X that his decision was made “in a matter of hours,” describing it as “the opportunity of a lifetime.” Shear plans to launch an independent investigation within 30 days to shed light on Sam Altman’s firing and the upheaval within the start-up.
These announcements come after a tumultuous weekend: On Friday, OpenAI’s board of directors surprisingly announced the immediate firing of Sam Altman following “a deliberative review process by the board, which concluded that it was not always blunt in his communications, impeding his ability to fulfill his responsibilities.” The body no longer has “confidence in its ability to lead OpenAI”, it added.
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