Unfolding crisis at OpenAI

ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence chatbot with unprecedented capabilities, churning out human-level content like poems or artwork in just seconds. The launch of ChatGPT ignited an AI race, with contenders including tech giants Amazon, Google, Microsoft and Meta.

Altman, CEO of Open AI has testified before US Congress about AI and spoken with heads of state about the technology, as pressure ramps up to regulate against risks such as AI's potential use in bioweapons, misinformation and other threats. Microsoft has invested billions of dollars in OpenAI and has woven the company's technology into its offerings, including search engine Bing.

Moreover, the firing of Altman, a prominent figure in the AI community, could undermine public trust in AI development. The reason of his termination of job says, as it no longer had confidence in his ability to lead the Microsoft-backed firm.

Top executives at Microsoft, which committed more than $10 billion in the company at the start of the year, were blindsided by the Altman news, getting a heads up from OpenAI only five to 10 minutes before it was made public. Now Altman has replaced with interim basis by Mira Murati, the company's chief technology officer.

Four hours later, OpenAI President Greg Brockman, the executive responsible for ChatGPT and other key products, quit the company, as a result of Altman’s defenestration. Brockman's departure was followed by three senior researchers who suddenly resigned Friday night.

There are strong Internal arguments among employees about whether OpenAI was developing artificial intelligence safely enough had been simmering before things came to a head.

OpenAI was founded by Altman and Elon Musk to fulfill a mission . Altman said in his Twitter handling page, I'm super proud of what we've all built together since starting in my apartment 8 years ago. The most recent crisis at OpenAI began in November 2023, when Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, announced that he was leaving the company's board of directors. Musk had been a vocal supporter of OpenAI, and his departure raised concerns about the company's future.

In addition to these internal challenges, OpenAI is also facing a number of external threats. Additionally, OpenAI is facing increasing competition from other companies, such as Google and DeepMind, that are also working on developing artificial general intelligence.

Moving forward, the unfolding crisis at OpenAI is a reminder of the challenges of developing safe and beneficial artificial general intelligence.

S Mohini Ratna Editor  VARINDIA