OpenAI CEO Sam Altman flatly denied that he will receive a huge equity stake in the startup worth billions of dollars as part of a corporate restructuring, according to multiple reports.
Altman, 39, responded hours after a Bloomberg report on Thursday claimed OpenAI’s board was discussing giving him a 7% stake as part of the pioneering AI company’s pivot to a for-profit entity.
Altman, who co-founded the firm, called the report that he might receive such a big chunk “ludicrous” during an all-hands meeting with OpenAI employees in Italy, The Information reported.
The OpenAI boss reportedly added that investors were pushing for him to receive equity to ensure his interests remain aligned with the firm.
OpenAI Chairman Bret Taylor had also pushed back on the report in an earlier statement, noting the board had “discussions about whether it would be beneficial to the company and our mission to have Sam be compensated with equity, but no specific figures have been discussed nor have any decisions been made.”
OpenAI confirmed Wednesday that it was planning to restructure itself as a for-profit benefit corporation, which would mean that the non-profit board of directors that has long overseen its operations will no longer be in control.
The plans have yet to be finalized, and OpenAI insisted the nonprofit “is core to our mission and will continue to exist.”
OpenAI was originally set up as a nonprofit in 2015 with a goal of creating safe artificial general intelligence – a term referring to AI with human-level or higher cognitive abilities.
Meanwhile, the Microsoft-backed firm’s leadership remains in turmoil. Three executives, including chief technology officer Mira Murati, announced their resignations this week just as the reports about a potential restructuring surfaced.
During Thursday’s all-hands meeting, Altman was reportedly adamant that the abrupt departures were not related to the board’s discussions.
“Most of the stuff I saw was also just totally wrong,” Altman said, according to CNBC. “But we have been thinking about that, our board has, for almost a year independently, as we think about what it takes to get to our next stage.”
“But I think this is just about people being ready for new chapters of their lives and a new generation of leadership,” Altman added.
Murati, who had worked closely with Altman, said in a message to OpenAI staffers that she was “stepping away because I want to create the time and space to do my own exploration. For now, my primary focus is doing everything in my power to ensure a smooth transition, maintaining the momentum we’ve built.”
Chief research officer Bob McGrew and top researcher Barret Zoph also exited in what has been a mass exodus of OpenAI executives since the start of the year.
Greg Brockman, OpenAI’s president and co-founder, said last month that he would take an extended leave of absence through the end of the year. John Schulman, another co-founder, left for job at OpenAI rival Anthropic.
In May, co-founder Ilya Sutskever and researcher Jan Leike after OpenAI dissolved its “Superalignment” team, which was responsible for overseeing the safe development of advanced AI.
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