Mira Murati, OpenAI's technology chief, becomes the latest exec to leave the company
OpenAI CTO Announces Departure #
The Chief Technology Officer of OpenAI, who played a crucial role in developing ChatGPT and the AI image generator Dall-E, has announced her departure from the company after six and a half years.
In a note to the OpenAI team, the departing CTO expressed gratitude for her time with the company, describing it as an extraordinary privilege. She stated that while there is never an ideal time to leave a cherished workplace, she felt the timing was right.
This departure is part of a series of recent executive exits from OpenAI. The leadership changes come as the company, known for creating ChatGPT, explores controversial growth strategies, including facilitating easier fundraising from investors and revenue generation.
OpenAI, which began as a non-profit research lab before developing a for-profit arm, is reportedly considering restructuring to potentially increase investor returns. The company is said to be in discussions about a new fundraising round that could value it at $150 billion.
The CTO’s exit follows the departures of other key figures from OpenAI in recent months, including the chief scientist and co-founder, another co-founder, and the president who is currently on extended leave.
Having joined OpenAI’s leadership team in 2018, the departing CTO previously worked at an augmented reality company and a prominent electric vehicle manufacturer. She played a significant role in OpenAI’s rise to prominence following the public release of ChatGPT in 2022, which sparked an AI race in the tech industry.
During a period of leadership turmoil at OpenAI in November, the CTO briefly served as interim CEO. She was also among the employees who threatened to resign if the ousted CEO was not reinstated.
More recently, she oversaw major technological advancements at the company, including the release of GPT-4, which brought human-like spoken conversations to ChatGPT, and the preview of OpenAI 1, an AI model claimed to be capable of ‘reasoning’ to solve complex science and math problems.
In her departure announcement, the CTO highlighted these recent releases as marking the beginning of a new era in AI interaction and intelligence. She emphasized that these developments went beyond creating smarter models, fundamentally changing how AI systems learn and reason through complex problems.
The CTO stated that she is leaving to pursue personal exploration but will assist with the leadership transition. The company has not yet provided details on the timeline for her formal exit or the appointment of a new CTO.
The CEO of OpenAI responded to the announcement, expressing deep appreciation for the departing CTO’s contributions to the company and its mission. He acknowledged her support during challenging times and expressed excitement for her future endeavors, indicating that more information about the leadership transition plan would be shared soon.