Summary
Time for a quick recap, after a busy day of developments.
The turmoil at generative artificial intelligence pioneer OpenAI has deepened, days after the organisation stunned the technology world by dismissing founder Sam Altman on Friday.
After investors applied pressure on OpenAI to reverse the decision, Altman paid a dramatic visit to the group’s offices yesterday afternoon, for negotiations about his return.
first and last time i ever wear one of these pic.twitter.com/u3iKwyWj0a
— Sam Altman (@sama) November 19, 2023
But hopes that he might be reappointed faded overnight. And this morning, it emerged that OpenAI were appointing the founder of Twitch, Emmett Shear, as interim CEO – replacing CTO Mira Murati who only took the reins on Friday.
Shear says he accepted the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity because he believe that OpenAI is “one of the most important companies currently in existence.”
Shear says he will hire an independent investigator to dig into the entire process leading to Altman’s dismissal, and reform OpenAI’s management and leadership team.
But the first sensational development of the day was that Microsoft is hiring Altman, and former OpenAI president Greg Brockman.
The pair “together with colleagues” will join Microsoft to lead a new advanced AI research team, the software giant’s CEO Satya Nadella revealed.
We remain committed to our partnership with OpenAI and have confidence in our product roadmap, our ability to continue to innovate with everything we announced at Microsoft Ignite, and in continuing to support our customers and partners. We look forward to getting to know Emmett…
— Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) November 20, 2023
Microsoft’s share price touched a new record high this afternoon, extending this year’s gains to over 55%.
But the second dramatic twist is that a majority of OpenAI’s staff has signed an open letter threatening to resign unless ousted chief Sam Altman is reinstated.
The letter, signed by around 500 employees, warns that staff will leave unless the board quits, saying:
“We are unable to work for or with people that lack competence, judgment and care for our mission and employees.”
Was going to post an update about OpenAI, but things would change before I finished my tweet.
— Lex Sokolin | finlex.eth (@LexSokolin) November 20, 2023
In other news…
Abu Dhabi-backed investment fund RedBird IMI has paved the way to take control of the Telegraph and Spectator publications after agreeing loans to repay debts owed by previous owners, the Barclay family.
Rishi Sunak hinted at business tax cuts to boost economic growth as he promised to reduce the tax burden “carefully and sustainably” and “over time”.
But Labour’s shadow business secretary has told corporate bosses that Rishi Sunak’s failure to grow the UK economy has made cutting taxes and increasing government spending harder to justify.
And chancellor Jeremy Hunt has been warned that combating the climate emergency will require higher taxes on wealth and big corporate polluters at the autumn statement.
The founder of General Motors-owned Cruise has stepped down less than a month after the driverless car company paused operations after an accident and the loss of permission to operate in California.
In the financial markets, the pound has hit a two-month high against the US dollar as investors bet that the Federal Reserve has reached the end of its interest rate-hiking cycle.
Updated
The future of OpenAI has been “thrown into chaos” today after hundreds of employees at the artificial intelligence company threatened to quit and join ousted CEO Sam Altman at Microsoft, the Washington Post points out.
They add:
“Honestly, it is heartbreaking to see such a world-changing organization be ripped apart,” said Sarah Guo, a venture capitalist and founder of Conviction.
“The previous standard-bearer for the AI revolution, the unassailable giant in the room is vulnerable, and new leadership will have their work cut out for them to build customer and employee trust. This completely changes the strategic landscape and emboldens every other player.”
