# Sam Altman leaving: OpenAI announces leadership transition **URL:** \ **Category:** Community\ **Tags:** openai, in-the-news\ **Created:** [November 17, 2023, 9:45pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694 "2023-11-17T21:45:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Malric](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/malric/32/450101_2.png) [@Malric](https://community.openai.com/u/Malric)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 8:04am UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/102 "2023-11-18T08:04:12Z")
I will get my popcorn, watch the drama, and see what really changes because of this. For now, I am skeptical, but I shall reserve judgment until all the facts are revealed and the impact on us consumers becomes apparent. I don’t expect this to remain hidden for too long. Generally, board members and consumers have very different interests. ---
**Author:** ![chatgptgist](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/chatgptgist/32/148858_2.png) [@chatgptgist](https://community.openai.com/u/chatgptgist)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 8:14am UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/103 "2023-11-18T08:14:26Z")
The whole news got me emotional. This is tough to deal with but I know he will be fine, and I wish him all the best. ---
**Author:** ![RonM](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/ronm/32/449305_2.png) [@RonM](https://community.openai.com/u/RonM)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 9:49am UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/105 "2023-11-18T09:49:13Z")
This may prove to be at the core of all this. Moving up the stack to the consumer product/creator marketplace level seems at fundamental odds with the mission referred to several times in the board announcement. Building a consumer-facing business (and not saying it isn’t a reasonable and obvious opportunity for OpenAI) takes a different set of skills and has very different economic imperatives. I do wonder about the future of the GPT marketplace. They may follow through on it, but listing to Mira in an interview recently, appears that some in the organization view the successful consumer-facing products as a surprise result of simply wanting a UI to test out things related to model development. ---
**Author:** ![zsexdr1233214567](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/zsexdr1233214567/32/237130_2.png) [@zsexdr1233214567](https://community.openai.com/u/zsexdr1233214567)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 9:53am UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/106 "2023-11-18T09:53:45Z")
To say that Sam’s departure dims the prospects of OpenAI might be too definitive, but it’s undeniable that it shrouds OpenAI’s future in uncertainty. AI technology is advancing at an unprecedented pace, and as OpenAI is a leading force in this AI wave, it places high demands on the captain of this flagship. His vision, strategic planning, and execution abilities not only determine the company’s fate but could also influence the global AI landscape. What position OpenAI will occupy in the future tech arena is now a big question mark. Sam has already left, and now I’m even more inclined to favor Microsoft completing its acquisition of OpenAI. At least in this way, AI can propel human civilization forward at full speed. ---
**Author:** ![trenton.dambrowitz](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/trenton.dambrowitz/32/146436_2.png) [@trenton.dambrowitz](https://community.openai.com/u/trenton.dambrowitz)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 9:57am UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/107 "2023-11-18T09:57:46Z")
I just woke up and saw this, my first reaction was that it was clickbait. I’m extremely unnerved to learn this is true. My fear is that this is the start of an acquisition or shift in priorities, I’ve been working extremely hard with the leaders at my company and they’ve completely bought in to what OpenAI have to offer, as well as AI as a whole. Obviously I didn’t really know him, but every interaction I saw him make with regulators, the press, and the community instilled trust. I hope we get a full explanation soon. ---
**Author:** ![qrdl](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/qrdl/32/361458_2.png) [@qrdl](https://community.openai.com/u/qrdl)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 10:16am UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/108 "2023-11-18T10:16:28Z")
**If MSFT was truly blindsided and that’s not just weak reporting, what we could be dealing is with a very incompetent board.** The board I assume has the right to oust Altman, but not to work with MSFT on the transition is utterly and unbelievably incompetent. MSFT has invested/promised billions and billions for OpenAI. OAI runs on Azure. To do this without MSFT’s co-operation, will force MSFT to drop OpenAI and replace it with their own technology / someone elses. There’s no way Satya is going to work with a board that doesn’t at least talk to him first before making a move like this that is such a massive reputational risk for them. ---
**Author:** ![mute8](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/mute8/32/146472_2.png) [@mute8](https://community.openai.com/u/mute8)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 10:20am UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/109 "2023-11-18T10:20:51Z")
Most important company in the world with the most dangerous technology can´t keep it together. Ofc there might be need for leadership change for reasons unknown to us, but it looks more like the entire board should go and give room for real professionals who understand PR. Embarrassing. ---
**Author:** ![aptx4669](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c37758/32.png) [@aptx4669](https://community.openai.com/u/aptx4669)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 10:55am UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/110 "2023-11-18T10:55:47Z")
it’s crazying when i heared this news 🤨 ---
**Author:** ![frank\_behr](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/frank_behr/32/197157_2.png) [@frank\_behr](https://community.openai.com/u/frank_behr)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 11:28am UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/111 "2023-11-18T11:28:16Z")
“If the board was still of sound mind, they must have ousted him due to a really severe breach of trust. I’m no expert in management matters, but now the community will blame EVERYTHING that goes wrong in the near future on this decision, with the attitude of ‘This wouldn’t have happened with Sam…’.” ---
**Author:** ![qrdl](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/qrdl/32/361458_2.png) [@qrdl](https://community.openai.com/u/qrdl)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 11:57am UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/112 "2023-11-18T11:57:07Z")
It’s important to appreciate that Sam’s departure is a minor issue compared to blindsiding MSFT. I really hope that isn’t true. ---
**Author:** ![Kaltovar](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/kaltovar/32/245274_2.png) [@Kaltovar](https://community.openai.com/u/Kaltovar)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 12:04pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/113 "2023-11-18T12:04:37Z")
Probably not. They’re more stable now than ever (Except perhaps last week), considering the Microsoft backing. Venture Capital isn’t exactly their biggest concern at the moment. They’ve got the funding, the momentum, and considering this just happened clearly the outside interest to fuel their future developments. (I am assuming these events were orchestrated by an exogenous party, such as a key stakeholder. If this is just internal corporate backstabbing it would be bad for valuation but not that much and not sticky in the long term.) ---
**Author:** ![Foo-Bar](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/foo-bar/32/219437_2.png) [@Foo-Bar](https://community.openai.com/u/Foo-Bar)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 12:15pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/114 "2023-11-18T12:15:16Z")
Hackernews says it might actually be a good move, because Altman wanted OpenAI go for the money, where the board wanted more security and being open (which were the fundamentals eight years ago). * * * ## Hackernews **The comments and links in the Hackernews threads give some hints that the chief scientist got the rest of the board (minus the chairman, who resigned) on his side.** OpenAI is originally a nonprofit and the goal was never to make a lot of money. People in the industry think this is great move (if the above is true); OpenAI was pioneering several directions of AI for years. When they released a new technology it often included a detailed paper, code, trained models, etc. Now their research is still breaking, but only for LLMs and only for them (and Microsoft). _Maybe this action will bring them back towards the original course._ * * * ## Ars Technica According to Ars Technica, it would be about a difference of opinion on the future of OpenAI in terms of revenue (Altman) vs. security and controlled growth (the board / Ilya Sutskever). ---
**Author:** ![qrdl](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/qrdl/32/361458_2.png) [@qrdl](https://community.openai.com/u/qrdl)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 12:24pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/115 "2023-11-18T12:24:48Z")
At the EOTD, MSFT is really the only player that matters. GPT4 would not be possible without them. They are the ones underwriting the massive loss that OpenAI is pulling in per query. ---
**Author:** ![Foo-Bar](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/foo-bar/32/219437_2.png) [@Foo-Bar](https://community.openai.com/u/Foo-Bar)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 12:35pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/116 "2023-11-18T12:35:16Z")
> [@qrdl](#): > > At the EOTD, MSFT is really the only player that matters. MSFT lost 1.75% market cap after the news. That is a whopping US$ 46.750.000.000,- down the drain. They invested like US$ 10.000.000.000,- in OpenAI this year. I can see MSFT is not happy and does support the board (they have a more stable future vision, it seems and not hunting for a cash-grab). ---
**Author:** ![Foo-Bar](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/foo-bar/32/219437_2.png) [@Foo-Bar](https://community.openai.com/u/Foo-Bar)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 12:37pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/117 "2023-11-18T12:37:19Z")
> [@Kaltovar](#): > > They’re more stable now than ever What I read from the threads; - **Altman** wanted money - The **board** wanted stability, performance and security With MSFT backing, you have the time to go for the last. ---
**Author:** ![dagger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/41988e/32.png) [@dagger](https://community.openai.com/u/dagger)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 12:42pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/118 "2023-11-18T12:42:35Z")
I am personally, incredibly disappointed with the board of OpenAI. With OpenAI’s drastic decisions, I do not trust the company or the non-profit anymore. They make drastic changes now, why can’t they do it again in the future? There’s value in a clean track record. Especially when you’re building the most important innovation ever. I will switch over to Sam’s product as soon as it comes out. ---
**Author:** ![Foo-Bar](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/foo-bar/32/219437_2.png) [@Foo-Bar](https://community.openai.com/u/Foo-Bar)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 1:14pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/119 "2023-11-18T13:14:44Z")
> [@dagger](#): > > I do not trust the company or the non-profit anymore The board wanted to move more to the “non profit” origin of the company with a strong focus on transparency, security and reliability. Altman wanted to go for the quick cash grab and was not very “security and performance minded” anymore. That’s why the board made this decision; they want a stable future where customers can trust the company. There is no need for a quick cash grab, since MSFT is backing them. At least that is what I see / hear / read from insiders in the Hackernews / Reddit and Ars Technica threads. Also the board was not happy with the bad performance, bugs, servers going down and the uncontrolled growth, where Altman wanted “bigger more bigger more growth”. It’s easy to see the board as anonymous bad guys and Altman as the victim, but maybe this time it’s different? ---
**Author:** ![qrdl](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/qrdl/32/361458_2.png) [@qrdl](https://community.openai.com/u/qrdl)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 1:18pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/120 "2023-11-18T13:18:45Z")
“since MSFT is backing them.” Not if they blindsided them. If they did, and MSFT can’t get the board under control, they will start disentangling from OpenAI. " \* The **board** wanted stability, performance and security" This process has so far been the absolutely opposite of stability. My hope is that Axios is wrong, and that MSFT wasn’t blindsided, or if they were, they can get some folks on the board going forward. Otherwise goodbye openai, we hardly knew ya. ---
**Author:** ![Foo-Bar](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/foo-bar/32/219437_2.png) [@Foo-Bar](https://community.openai.com/u/Foo-Bar)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 1:26pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/121 "2023-11-18T13:26:39Z")
> [@qrdl](#): > > Not if they blindsided them. If they did, and MSFT can’t get the board under control, they will start disentangling from OpenAI. Yeah, the thing is nobody knows… And nobody is talking, because of signed contracts. But within weeks things will become clear, I think. Microsoft is not a company you want to play with, not when they just invested 10 trillion. So at least “someone” is not amused right now (OpenAI board / MSFT or Altman… choose your picks). ---
**Author:** ![qrdl](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/openai1/user_avatar/community.openai.com/qrdl/32/361458_2.png) [@qrdl](https://community.openai.com/u/qrdl)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2023, 1:53pm UTC](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694/122 "2023-11-18T13:53:28Z")
Top researchers quitting. [https://www.theinformation.com/articles/three-senior-openai-researchers-resign-as-crisis-deepens](https://www.theinformation.com/articles/three-senior-openai-researchers-resign-as-crisis-deepens) Not good. Very likely Sam could start a new AI company, offer stock options and get all the best of the rest. No longer chained by the non profit. He would absolutely know who was talented. [Previous page](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694.md?page=5) [Next page](https://community.openai.com/t/sam-altman-leaving-openai-announces-leadership-transition/510694.md?page=7)