OpenAI is facing a leadership crisis as three key figures announce their departure. The news comes amid a tumultuous year for the AI powerhouse, marked by legal battles and high-profile exits.
John Schulman, a co-founder of OpenAI, is leaving for rival Anthropic. Schulman confirmed his departure in a statement on X.
“I’ve made the difficult decision to leave OpenAI,” Schulman wrote. “This choice stems from my desire to deepen my focus on AI alignment, and to start a new chapter of my career where I can return to hands-on technical work. I’ve decided to pursue this goal at Anthropic.”
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman responded to Schulman’s departure on X, writing, “Thank you for everything you’ve done for OpenAI. We will miss you tremendously and make you proud of this place.”
An OpenAI spokesperson echoed Altman’s sentiments, adding that Schulman’s work “established a strong foundation” for both OpenAI and the wider AI industry.
Schulman’s exit follows closely on the heels of Jan Leike, who co-led OpenAI’s superalignment group, who also left for Anthropic in May.
Adding fuel to the fire, Ilya Sutskever, another co-founder, chief scientist, and the other leader of the superalignment team, also announced his departure in May. Sutskever announced his own startup in June that aims for “safe superintelligence.”
Following this string of departures, only three of OpenAI’s original 11 founders remain.
However, in a further blow to the company, another one of those founders – OpenAI president Greg Brockman – announced an extended leave of absence through the end of the year. While he reassured the public on X that the “mission is far from complete,” stating “we still have a safe AGI to build,” his absence will undoubtedly be felt.
According to The Information, Peter Deng – who isn’t an OpenAI founder, but is a high-profile AI figure that joined the company last year after leading products at Meta, Uber, and Airtable – has also left.
These departures come at a critical juncture for OpenAI. The company is currently embroiled in a legal battle with Elon Musk, who recently reignited a lawsuit against the company and two of its founders, including Altman and Brockman. Musk alleges that he was misled about OpenAI’s commitment to its non-profit status and its focus on ethical AI development.
With its ranks becoming depleted, increasing competition, and a high-profile legal battle looming, OpenAI is facing an uphill battle.
(Photo by Kevin Wang)
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