Sam Altman’s cryptic X post amid ousted OpenAI CEO’s return suspense

“i love the openai team so much,” Altman wrote, a day after the board fired him in a surprise move that rocked the tech world.

Responding to Altman’s post, former OpenAI president Greg Brockman, who said he quit the company over the former’s firing on Friday, posted a heart emoji.

The possibilities of a return or a restart for Altman, seen by many as the face of generative artificial intelligence, are in flux, a source told Bloomberg.

OpenAI and Altman did not reply to requests for comment, the news agency reported.

Investors in OpenAI, including its biggest backer Microsoft, are discussing damage control, including possibly pushing the board to restore Altman as CEO, fearing a mass exodus of talent without him, other sources said.

Kholsa Ventures, an early backer of OpenAI, wants Altman back at OpenAI but “will back him in whatever he does next,” the fund’s founder Vinod Khosla posted on X on Saturday.

Microsoft declined to comment. It reportedly owns 49% of the company, while other investors and employees control 49%, with 2% owned by OpenAI’s nonprofit parent.

Brockman is expected to join OpenAI any effort, according the Information reported, which earlier claimed that the possible new venture, citing a person familiar with the matter.

Brockman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. OpenAI did not respond to a request for comment.

Some researchers at OpenAI, including Szymon Sidor, have quit the company over the CEO change, but it was unclear if Sidor and others would join a new Altman venture, two people familiar with the matter said. Sidor confirmed quitting.

Altman and Apple’s former design chief Jony Ive have been discussing building a new AI hardware device, the Information reported in September. It reported that SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son had been involved in the conversation.

(With inputs from agencies)