OpenAI eyes path to 'for-profit' status as more executives flee
The tension between creating technology for humanity's sake and collecting a profit is coming to a head for the creator of ChatGPT
The tension between OpenAI's altruistic nonprofit roots and an internal push towards prioritizing profitability over safety is coming to a head. Recent news of mass resignations and a rumored shift toward for-profit status highlight how CEO Sam Altman has steered the company in a new direction. The news that the company's nonprofit days could end has some pondering: Has success warped yet another Silicon Valley darling, or was this the plan all along?
Resignations pile up as rumors swirl
A mass exodus of executives and cofounders continues amid news of a restructuring that will make OpenAI more attractive to potential investors. The company's longtime chief technology officer, Mira Murati, announced her departure to "create the time and space to do my own exploration." That same day, chief research officer Bob McGrew and VP of post-training Barret Zoph also resigned. The leadership changes are a "natural part of companies," Altman said in an X post following Murati's decision to step down. The abruptness admittedly overtook him, "but we are not a normal company," he said.
Since ChatGPT's release changed the company's trajectory, several employees have jumped ship. The mass exodus has been "particularly pronounced this year," said The Wall Street Journal. More than twenty other researchers and executives have quit this year, including co-founder and former chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, co-founder and former top researcher John Schulman and former researcher Jan Leike.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The latest resignations come as reports spread that OpenAI is planning to restructure itself as a for-profit enterprise next year, a "seismic shift" for the company that started as a non-profit, the Journal said. OpenAI was founded in 2015 to "benefit humanity as a whole, unconstrained by a need to generate financial return," according to a statement published at the time. Reports say the company could now be valued at $150 billion. There were also alleged talks of Altman receiving a 7% equity stake in the company, which would "mark the first time Altman is granted ownership in the artificial intelligence startup," Bloomberg said. Altman dismissed those claims as "just not true" at an all-hands staff meeting, CNBC reported.
Silicon Valley strikes again?
The pivot to for-profit status unmasks "what has long been happening within the company," Karen Hao said in The Atlantic. The nonprofit arm has continued to exist, but all the outside investments go "directly into the for-profit, which also hires the company's employees." The board crisis in which Altman was temporarily ousted tested the power between the two. Ultimately, "the money won, and Altman ended up on top." If reports are true, the new public structure will simply reflect "what the company has been — in effect, the will of a single person."
It is worth noting that Altman's pivot "isn't an anomaly," Parmy Olson said at Bloomberg. It is a "recurring Silicon Valley theme" of "defining oneself with a lofty mission that's eventually eclipsed by rapid growth and profit." As long as they operate in "a regulatory vacuum," tech companies will "continue to paint a mirage about their objectives," Olsen said. "If Altman's latest actions make that more apparent, so much the better."
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Theara Coleman has worked as a staff writer at The Week since September 2022. She frequently writes about technology, education, literature and general news. She was previously a contributing writer and assistant editor at Honeysuckle Magazine, where she covered racial politics and cannabis industry news.
-
Is the UK worth investing in?
Today's big question Labour looks to woo business and reverse years of underinvestment in search for holy grail of growth
By The Week UK Published
-
Top cooking shows for foodies
The Week Recommends From Bake Off to Chef's Table, these mouth-watering TV shows will inspire you in the kitchen
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
The four presidents who were assassinated in office
The Explainer The unlucky men who fell victim to successful plots against their lives
By David Faris Published
-
States sue TikTok over children's mental health
Speed Read The lawsuit was filed by 13 states and Washington, D.C.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
'Stunningly lifelike' AI podcasts are here
Under the Radar Users are amazed – and creators unnerved – by Google tool that generates human conversation from text in moments
By Abby Wilson Published
-
Microsoft's Three Mile Island deal: How Big Tech is snatching up nuclear power
In the spotlight The company paid for access to all the power made by the previously defunct nuclear plant
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
How will the introduction of AI change Apple's iPhone?
Today's Big Question 'Apple Intelligence' is set to be introduced on the iPhone 16 as part of iOS 18
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
How UK companies are tracking their employees
The Explainer PwC is latest to use geo-location to monitor workers, in 'sinister' increasingly widespread trend
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
AI and the 'cocktail party problem'
Under The Radar The human ear can naturally filter out background noise. Now technology has been developed to do the same
By Elizabeth Carr-Ellis, The Week UK Published
-
Spotify has an issue with 'fake artists'
In the Spotlight Some of these bands are reportedly generating millions of streams from Spotify users
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
AI is cannibalizing itself. And creating more AI.
The Explainer Artificial intelligence consumption is outpacing the data humans are creating
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published