'Hurt and angry': Sam Altman opens up about OpenAI board's failed coup

Altman said that the team had great conviction and focus before, and now that has increased many folds

"It took me a few minutes to snap out of it and get over the ego and emotions," said Sam Altman in an interview with The Verge when asked how he felt when the OpenAI board asked him to return a day after firing him.

On November 17, the Board of the OpenAI announced that the company is parting ways with Altman, also a co-founder and one of the most prominent figures in the AI ecosystem, after losing confidence in him as a leader.

Upon his reappointment as the chief executive officer (CEO) later that week, Altman sacked the Board involved in firing him, ending a failed attempted boardroom coup that lasted five days.

Now that things are returning to usual at the office, Sam Altman has opened up in an interview with The Verge, detailing what occurred behind the scenes. 

In his interview, Altman revealed that his immediate reaction "was sort of one of defiance". He added that he felt hurt and angry after he had poured his life force into the company and the mission of safe and beneficial AGI for the last four and a half years. When asked how he felt when he was asked to come back to the office, Altman said it took him a few minutes to get over his ego and emotions before accepting the offer. 

Reacting to employee support for him during the entire saga, Altman said, "Definitely we have come through this with a stronger and more unified and focused and committed team." He added that the team had great conviction and focus before, and now that has increased many folds.

Sharing his thoughts on the whole saga, the OpenAI CEO said that he still doesn't have a clear picture of the whole situation and the reason he was initially fired for. "The Board is going to do an independent review which I very much welcome. I don't have much else to say now, but I'm looking forward to learning more," Altman said. He admitted that there was a problem with the governance structure within the organisation, which will need time to fix.

Altman refused to comment on a question about the alleged Q* model breakthrough. However, he said that the company expects progress in this technology to be rapid and also that they expect to continue to work very hard to figure out how to make AI safe and beneficial. "Without commenting on any specific thing or project or whatever, we believe that progress is research. You can always hit a wall, but we expect that progress will continue to be significant." Altman concluded.