Emmett Shear becomes Interim OpenAI CEO

Twitch co-founder Emmett Shear confirmed his appointment as OpenAI's new CEO on Monday, days after the AI firm fired Sam Altman.

"Today I got a call inviting me to consider a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: to become the interim CEO of @OpenAI. After consulting with my family and reflecting on it for just a few hours, I accepted," he said in a post on X.

Altman, a prominent figure in Silicon Valley, was removed from his position as the head of OpenAI, the company that launched "ChatGPT," a year ago, following criticism from the board for not being "transparent" with them. 

In response to his dismissal, board chairman Greg Brockman, also a co-founder of the company, announced his resignation.

Shear, in his statement, refuted claims that Altman was dismissed due to safety concerns, stating, "Before accepting the position, I investigated the reasons behind the change. The board did not cite Sam over any specific safety dispute; his justification was entirely different."

He continued, "I'm not foolish enough to take on this role without the board's support for promoting our excellent models."

Just an hour before Shear's announcement, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella confirmed that Altman would be appointed to lead a research team on artificial intelligence within the Microsoft group.

AFP