--- title: "OpenAI Just Fired Sam Altman, Its Charismatic CEO" description: "Shake Up Here's one we weren't expecting: OpenAI has unexpectedly announced that it's ditching its charismatic CEO Sam Altman, effective immediately. \"Mr. Altman’s departure follows a deliberative review process by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities,\" the company […]" date: "2023-11-17" modified: "2023-11-17" authors: - name: "Jon Christian" job_title: "Executive Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jonc" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/sam-altman-leaving-openai" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "OpenAI" tags: - "artificial intelligence" - "OpenAI" - "sam altman" - "the digest" --- # OpenAI Just Fired Sam Altman, Its Charismatic CEO ![Here's one we weren't expecting: OpenAI has unexpectedly announced that it's ditching its charismatic CEO Sam Altman, effective immediately. ]() *SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 16: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman looks on during the APEC CEO Summit at Moscone West on November 16, 2023 in San Francisco, California. The APEC summit is being held in San Francisco and runs through November 17. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) \Image: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images\* ## Sorry, Sam Here's one we weren't expecting: the creator of ChatGPT, OpenAI, has unexpectedly announced that it's ditching its charismatic CEO Sam Altman, effective immediately. "Mr. Altman’s departure follows a deliberative review process by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities," the company wrote in the [surprise announcement](). "The board no longer has confidence in his ability to continue leading OpenAI." ## Over Lord The statement is strikingly vague about exactly what went off the rails with Altman, who cofounded the company alongside the also since-departed Elon Musk back in 2015. Sure, the exec has shown a penchant for making [striking public predictions]() and occasionally [fostering drama]() with the likes of his [frenemy Musk]() — oh yeah, and [he's a doomsday prepper]() because he fears, among other things, AI rising up against humankind – but there hadn't been any public sign until now of friction with the company's board of directors. In fact, the member of the board with arguably the most name recognition, Ilya Sutskever, [has been prone]() to making [provocative statements]() about AI himself. Regardless, though, it's clear that something went amiss behind the scenes. "OpenAI was deliberately structured to advance our mission: to ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all humanity," the statement continued. "The board remains fully committed to serving this mission. We are grateful for Sam’s many contributions to the founding and growth of OpenAI. At the same time, we believe new leadership is necessary as we move forward. As the leader of the company’s research, product, and safety functions." ## Road Ahead OpenAI says the search is afoot for a new permanent CEO, but in the interim it's appointing the company's chief technology officer Mira Murati in the role as a stopgap. (Curious what we know about her? Here's [our rundown]().) "As the leader of the company’s research, product, and safety functions," it wrote. "Mira is exceptionally qualified to step into the role of interim CEO. We have the utmost confidence in her ability to lead OpenAI during this transition period." Altman himself eventually weighed in [on Twitter-formerly-X](). "i loved my time at openai," he wrote, in all lower case. "it was transformative for me personally, and hopefully the world a little bit. most of all i loved working with such talented people. will have more to say about what’s next later." **More on OpenAI:** [*GPT-5 Is Officially on the Way, OpenAI CEO Says*]() ## Author I'm responsible for editing, assigning, and scouting at Futurism, as well as occasionally writing for the site. That work involves keeping an eye on a wide range of narratives and issues, but over the past few years I've become increasingly interested in how AI is shaping the future of media, the web, and information itself. My day-to-day often involves collaborating on reporting and commentary projects bylined by my colleagues, but I try to find time to do my own reporting as well; stories I've broken for Futurism have been cited by publications including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the New Yorker, Wired, Ars Technica, New York Magazine, the Columbia Journalism Review, Bloomberg, and more. I grew up in Southern Vermont and attended Vanderbilt University. Prior to Futurism, I contributed to outlets including the Boston Globe, Vice, Wired, Slate, the Atlantic, the Outline, Ars Technica and more, and did stints in farming and food service. I currently live in Brooklyn, New York, and in my free time I enjoy pinball, word games, cycling, running, and music production. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()