Sam Altman Returns as CEO of OpenAI

SOURCE: THE VERGE

-After a five-day attempted coup by OpenAI's board of directors, Altman returns alongside co-founder Greg Brockman.

By NILAY PATEL AND ALEX HEATH

Sam Altman is returning as CEO of OpenAI, overcoming an attempted board coup that plunged the company into chaos over the past few days. Former CEO Greg Brockman, who resigned in protest over Altman's firing, will also return.

The company said in a statement Tuesday night that it has an "agreement in principle" for Altman to return along with a new board consisting of Bret Taylor, Larry Summers and Adam D'Angelo. D'Angelo is a holdover from the previous board that initially fired Altman on Friday. We are told he remains on this new board to give some representation to the previous board.

People familiar with the negotiations say the primary job of this initial small board is to vet and appoint an expanded board of up to nine people that will re-establish OpenAI's governance. Microsoft, which has pledged to invest billions in the company, wants a seat on that expanded board, as does Altman himself. During a press tour this week , CEO Satya Nadella said the company wanted no more "surprises."

The human power struggle at the center of all this still doesn't seem to be entirely over.

We are told that both sides have agreed to an investigation into this whole saga. Presumably that investigation will be conducted by an independent, outside law firm. Based on our conversations with the people involved, the human power struggle at the center of all this appears not to be completely over yet.

All key parties have posted about the deal for Altman's return, which we're told is a done deal minus some last-minute red tape. On X (formerly Twitter), Altman said that "everything I've done over the past few days has been in service of keeping this team and its mission together."

One of OpenAI's other major investors, Thrive Capital, called Altman's return "the best outcome for the company, its employees, those developing its technologies and the world at large."

"OpenAI has the potential to be one of the most important companies in the history of computing," said Kelly Sims, a partner at Thrive, in a statement shared with The Verge . "Sam and Greg possess a deep commitment to the integrity of the company and an unmatched ability to inspire and lead. We couldn't be more excited to have them return to the company they founded and helped build into what it is today."

Helen Toner, who was a key board member in the initial movement to oust Altman, simply said, "And now, we'll all get some sleep."

Altman's return is even more shocking than his sudden departure on Friday . OpenAI's nonprofit board seemed resolute in its initial decision to oust Altman, shuffling two executive directors in three days to prevent his reinstatement. Meanwhile, OpenAI employees revolted and threatened to defect to Microsoft along with Altman and co-founder Brockman if the board did not resign.

Since Altman was fired on Friday, board members who opposed him have withheld detailed reasoning for why he was fired, even under threat of investor lawsuits and employee strikes. On Sunday, a key board member, Ilya Sutskever, returned to Altman's side after Brockman's wife pleaded with him. (Sutskever officiated at his wedding at OpenAI headquarters; that's how deep it all goes ). The move by Sutskever, who is also OpenAI's chief scientist, left the three remaining board members more vulnerable.

We're told that interim CEO Emmett Shear, who was appointed Sunday by the board to replace former interim CEO Mira Murati, at one point threatened to resign unless the board could provide documentation or evidence of wrongdoing to support Altman's dismissal. After news of her return was announced Tuesday night, Shear called it "the path that maximizes safety in addition to doing the right thing by all stakeholders involved. I'm glad to have been part of the solution."