Tesla chief Elon Musk on Monday mocked Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s announcement confirming that OpenAI founder Sam Altman will be joining the company after his unceremonious exit from the artificial intelligence research organisation.
Earlier today, Nadella confirmed that Altman will be joining its parent company along with his ex-colleague, Greg Brockman and that both of them will be leading a new advanced AI research team at Microsoft.
Nadella also appeared to confirm Emmett Shear’s reported appointment as the new OpenAI CEO, saying they are “looking forward to getting to know Emmett Shear and OAI’s new leadership team and working with them.”
“…We look forward to getting to know Emmett Shear and OAI’s new leadership team and working with them. And 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,” Nadella wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Replying to Nadella’s post, Musk then wrote, “Now they will have to use Teams!”
Musk was referring to media reports claiming that Altman and Brockman were fired from his company over a call on Google Meet, instead of Microsoft Teams. Notably, OpenAI has secured funding of $13 billion from Microsoft. The tech giant owns around 49% of the AI startup.
Earlier in the day, OpenAI hired former Twitch co-chief Emmett Shear as the next CEO, defying calls from the investors to reinstate Altman.
Who is Sam Altman, ex-CEO of OpenAI?
Sam Altman is an entrepreneur who is known for his disruptive and advanced views on artificial intelligence. Altman served as the Chief Executive Officer of OpenAI from 2019 to 2023.
Interested in the tech world at a young age, Altman learnt how to code and take apart a Macintosh computer just at the age of eight. After getting into the premium Stanford University, he decided to drop out to develop his own mobile app Loopt, eventually rising to the top and making his way to OpenAI.
Before Microsoft-owned OpenAI, Sam Altman also headed firms like WorldCoin and Y Combinator. Altman also served as the CEO of Reddit for just eight days after Yishan Wong’s resignation.
