Sam Altman admitted he was “hurt and angry” after OpenAI’s board of directors fired him for “failing to be consistently candid in his communications,” according to an interview with The Verge.
He told the tech outlet that he was defiant when some board members asked him to return, but he pushed past the “ego and emotions” to come back.
Why Altman decided to return to OpenAI
Altman told The Verge that the whole ousting situation “sucked,” but despite his bitter feelings, he went back.
Sam Altman returned to OpenAI despite the coup.
Credit: Getty Images/Joel Saget
“I really loved the company and had poured my life force into this for the last four and a half years full time, but really longer than that with most of my time. And we’re making such great progress on the mission I care so much about, the mission of safe and beneficial [artificial general intelligence],” he said.
In other words, when Altman deliberated whether he should return, concern about OpenAI’s impact outweighed the slighted part of him that may have wanted to turn his back on the AI company.
Did Altman answer the million-dollar question?
There’s one question we all want to know. Why did OpenAI’s board of directors abruptly oust Altman? Yes, according to an internal note seen by Reuters, there was some sort of “breakdown of communications,” but that is nebulous and doesn’t reveal much.
Unfortunately, despite The Verge’s efforts to squeeze out some clarity out of Altman, the OpenAI CEO remained hush hush.
“The board is going to do an independent review here. I very much welcome that. ” Altman said after The Verge asked his thoughts on why he was fired. “I don’t have much else to say now, but I’m looking forward to learning more.”
Altman was also asked to expound on an X post that said, “It is clear that there were real misunderstandings between me and members of the board.” In response, Altman said, “I’m not ready to go talk about that yet. I think it’s very important to let this review process run.”
“The review process” Altman is referring to is the independent investigation OpenAI’s new board is conducting to understand what went awry.
Although OpenAI endured major upheaval over the past few weeks, the company ironically benefitted from it, according to Altman.
“Definitely we have come through with this a stronger and more unified and focused and committed team,” he said. “I thought we had great conviction and focus before, and now, I think we have way, way, way, more. So that’s my silver lining to all of this.”
