Sam Altman is officially back as CEO of OpenAI and immediately introduces the new board of directors. But there appears to be no serious place for Microsoft on it.
The largest investor in OpenAI could only let the crisis within the AI developer happen. Returning CEO Sam Altman says in his blog about his return that nothing will change this situation for Microsoft. The company only gets an observer role on the board of directors.
No voting rights
This gives the Windows maker access to sensitive information discussed with the board of directors. Voting rights in important situations, it does not get. The tech giant’s hands would thus appear to be tied if another major change at OpenAI occurs in the future.
Microsoft seemed to be looking for a greater say in the company into which it regularly pumps billions. There would have been hopes of gaining a say in merger deals. Rumours of negotiations between OpenAI and Anthropic seem to have led to this demand. The merger was allegedly proposed by OpenAI, but Dario Amodei, Anthropic CEO, refused the idea.
Also read: Microsoft has demands for OpenAI: will the board change again?
Further changes for the board
In addition, Altman officially introduced the public once again to the three new members of the board of directors. The vacant seats will be filled by Bret Taylor, former co-CEO of Salesforce, Larry Summers, former U.S. Treasury Secretary, and Adam D’Angelo, founder of knowledge platform Quora.
Board Chair Taylor takes over the blog for a moment to clarify how it wants to strengthen OpenAI with the rest of the board. For example, six new members with experience in the IT industry and knowledge of security and policy are still being sought. Furthermore, an independent committee will be formed to follow up on recent events.