OpenAl employees complained about Altman’s behavior before his dismissal – Kommersant

Several senior OpenAl employees complained to the board of directors about the company’s CEO Sam Altman shortly before his dismissal, reported The Washington Post with reference to two sources. According to them, board members were informed about the psychological pressure that Mr. Altman exerts on his colleagues, creating chaos in the team.

According to WP, information was brought to the board of directors that Sam Altman was “pitting employees against each other in an unhealthy way,” which resulted in delays in work. According to sources Bloombergone of the reasons for the growing tension was the disagreement between Sam Altman and board member Helen Toner.

The CEO of OpenAl, the agency writes, wanted to get Ms. Toner removed from her position in October because in one of her research papers she spoke critically about security practices at OpenAl. In conversations with board members, sources say, Mr. Altman “distorted the views of others” and convinced interlocutors that he was supported by other board members.

WP writes that complaints about Sam Altman’s behavior were the main reason for his dismissal. At the same time, some employees claimed that they were afraid of retaliation from Mr. Altman if he found out about their involvement in conversations about his resignation.

OpenAl announced about the dismissal of Sam Altman on November 17. The board of directors explained that the CEO was not frank with them, but did not provide details. Following this, several highly qualified employees, as well as OpenAl President Greg Brockman, left the company. November 22 board of directors reported on the reinstatement of Sam Altman. He himself later said that there was a “misunderstanding” between him and the board members and it was important to learn from “this experience.”

Read more about Sam Altman’s story in Kommersant’s article. “The Combinator from Russkaya Gorka”.

Lusine Balasyan