In an unexpected turn of events at OpenAI, news surfaced on Monday morning that 500 out of 700 employees have jointly requested the resignation of the remaining board members. The employees, including co-founder Ilya Sutskever, expressed their intention to quit if the board failed to step down immediately. The request was made in a letter signed by twelve high-ranking employees and received support from 505 individuals within the company.
A Crisis of Confidence
The letter conveyed the leaders’ dissatisfaction with the board’s response to the decision of firing CEO Sam Altman. Despite attempts to collaborate and seek clarity, the board failed to provide concrete evidence or factual explanations regarding their allegations. Consequently, the leaders reached the conclusion that the board was incapable of fulfilling their responsibilities and negotiating in good faith.
“Your actions have made it obvious that you are incapable of overseeing OpenAI. We are unable to work for or with people that lack competence, judgement, and care for our mission and employees.”
In a surprising development, it was revealed that Microsoft had assured the dissenting group of employees that there would be positions available for them at the company’s new subsidiary. This announcement coincided with Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, hiring former CEO Altman, co-founder Greg Brockman, and others to join a new initiative at Microsoft.
The Demand for Change
The twelve signatories warned that immediate action was necessary to prevent their imminent resignations. They called for the current board members to step down and proposed two independent directors, Bret Taylor and Will Hurd, as replacement leads. Additionally, they urged the reinstatement of Sam Altman and Greg Brockman.
“We demand the appointment of new leadership that embodies competence, judgement, and dedication to OpenAI’s mission and employees.”
Notably, the inclusion of co-founder Sutskever as a signatory on the letter raised eyebrows. Previous reports had indicated that Sutskever had played a role in the decision to fire Altman. However, considering his executive position within the company and the board’s majority vote in favor of the termination, it is plausible that Sutskever initially supported the decision but later changed his stance after further reflection.
Shortly before the release of the letter, Sutskever expressed deep regret for his involvement in the board’s actions via a tweet. The repercussions of the mass-defection threat from OpenAI employees remain uncertain for Microsoft, although the company’s shares saw an early-morning trading surge of 1 percent, seemingly positioning them as the victor in this unfolding saga.
