Sam Altman will not resume his role as CEO of OpenAI, and the company is set to appoint Emmett Shear, former CEO of Twitch, as the new interim CEO, according to reports referencing a statement by OpenAI board director Ilya Sutskever to the company’s staff.
Emmett Shear, a co-founder of Twitch, had stepped down from his position at the Amazon-owned live video streaming platform earlier this year.
While OpenAI did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment, the report stated that efforts to bring Altman back as CEO were unsuccessful. The statement cited by The Information did not provide further details.
Altman and former OpenAI President Greg Brockman were reported to have met with executives at the company’s San Francisco headquarters on Sunday. This meeting followed interim CEO Mira Murati’s announcement that she had invited Altman.
Altman is reportedly in discussions regarding a potential return to OpenAI, focusing on improving the company’s governance structure. Simultaneously, he is said to be considering launching a new artificial intelligence (AI) venture.
The abrupt firing of Altman by the company’s board on Friday sent shockwaves through the tech industry. Altman is known as one of the prominent figures in generative AI, particularly associated with OpenAI’s ChatGPT bot.
OpenAI’s former president and co-founder, Greg Brockman, also made an appearance at the office on Sunday, according to The Information. Brockman had stepped down from the board as chairman as part of the management shuffle and announced his departure from the company on Friday.
If Altman returns to OpenAI, Microsoft, its largest supporter, is reportedly contemplating taking a role on the board, with discussions ongoing. Microsoft’s potential involvement could include a seat on OpenAI’s board of directors or serving as a board observer without voting power.