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Three top executives at OpenAI, including CTO Mira Murati, are leaving the company.
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The departures come during a significant $6.5 billion funding round that could raise OpenAI’s valuation to $150 billion.
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The leadership changes follow other notable exits, including co-founders John Schulman and Greg Brockman.
OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, is experiencing significant leadership changes. Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati, Vice President of Research Barret Zoph, and Chief Research Officer Bob McGrew announced their departures on Wednesday. This news comes during a crucial period for the company, as it navigates a $6.5 billion funding round that could increase its valuation to $150 billion.
Mira Murati, who has been with OpenAI for six and a half years, will focus on personal exploration. Her exit is still being negotiated, and she will continue working at OpenAI during this time. Murati briefly served as OpenAI’s CEO in November 2023 and was instrumental in launching GPT-4 in May 2023.
The departures of Murati, Zoph, and McGrew follow other notable leadership changes at OpenAI. Co-founder John Schulman left in August to join rival AI firm Anthropic, while Greg Brockman, another co-founder, announced a sabbatical. Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever also departed earlier in May. OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, has announced internal promotions to fill the gaps left by the departing executives.
Altman stated that Murati did not inform him in advance of her decision but explained that she wanted to leave during a positive period for the company. The impact of these leadership changes on investor confidence remains uncertain, but some deals contain clauses allowing investors to withdraw if there’s a significant negative impact on the company.
