Microsoft has achieved its goal. Former OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has been appointed to lead Microsoft’s advanced AI research team. On Monday, November 20th, the OpenAI Board had decided that Altman would not be returning as CEO and the role was given to Emmett Shear, the previous CEO of Twitch.
On Tuesday, Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, announced that Altman would be joining the company and would lead the new advanced AI research team. In a post, Nadella stated: “We’re extremely excited to share the news that Sam Altman and Greg Brockman, together with colleagues, will be joining Microsoft to lead a new advanced AI research team. We look forward to moving quickly to provide them with the resources needed for their success.”
Microsoft OpenAI is a long-term partner of OpenAI and has invested $10 billion in the artificial intelligence company. Nadella reassured the company’s commitment to OpenAI: “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 Shear and OAI’s new leadership team and working with them.”
This move is seen as an important milestone for Microsoft, as the company strives to consolidate its position in the AI field. Altman tweeted: “the mission continues”, possibly referring to his continued pursuit of a path that could have led him into conflict with OpenAI Inc. Board.
