OpenAI ex-CEO Sam Altman will join Microsoft to 'lead' new advanced AI research team: Satya Nadella
New York, Nov 20: Sam Altman, the former chief of artificial intelligence start-up OpenAI, will join Microsoft to "lead" a new advanced AI research team, the tech giant's CEO Satya Nadella announced on Monday.
In a blog post, Microsoft's Indian-origin chief said the company remains committed to its partnership with OpenAI and has confidence in its product roadmap, "our ability to continue to innovate with everything we announced at Microsoft Ignite, and in continuing to support our customers and partners".
"We're extremely excited to share the news that Sam Altman and Greg Brockman (OpenAI co-founder and former president), together with colleagues, will be joining Microsoft to lead a new advanced AI research team. We look forward to moving quickly to provide them with the resources needed for their success," Nadella said.
Nadella also shared Microsoft's announcement about Altman and Brockman joining the tech giant team in a post on X, to which the former OpenAI CEO responded, "The mission continues."
Replying to Altman's post, Nadella said, "I'm super excited to have you join as CEO of this new group, Sam, setting a new pace for innovation. We've learned a lot over the years about how to give founders and innovators space to build independent identities and cultures within Microsoft, including GitHub, Mojang Studios, and LinkedIn, and I'm looking forward to having you do the same."
Last week, the board of directors of OpenAI announced that Altman, 38, will depart as CEO and leave the board, which "no longer has confidence" in his "ability to continue leading OpenAI".
Brockman had also quit the start-up and had said that Altman and he were "shocked and saddened" by what the board did.
A statement by OpenAI said that Altman's departure follows a "deliberative review process by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities".
OpenAI had said that as part of this transition, Brockman will be stepping down as chairman of the board and will remain in his role at the company, reporting to the CEO.
In the blog post, Nadella said Microsoft looks forward to getting to know Emmett Shear, the former chief executive of Twitch who has been named interim chief at OpenAI, as well as OAI's new leadership team and working with them.
Nadella said Microsoft is continuing to rapidly innovate for this era of AI, with over 100 announcements across the full tech stack from AI systems, models, and tools in Azure, to Copilot.
"Most importantly, we're committed to delivering all of this to our customers while building for the future. We have a long-term agreement with OpenAI with full access to everything we need to deliver on our innovation agenda and an exciting product roadmap; and remain committed to our partnership, and to Mira and the team. Together, we will continue to deliver the meaningful benefits of this technology to the world," he said.
We remain committed to our partnership with OpenAI and have confidence in our product roadmap, our ability to continue to innovate with everything we announced at Microsoft Ignite, and in continuing to support our customers and partners. We look forward to getting to know Emmett…
— Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) November 20, 2023
the mission continues https://t.co/d1pHiFxcSe
— Sam Altman (@sama) November 20, 2023
Sam and I are shocked and saddened by what the board did today.
— Greg Brockman (@gdb) November 18, 2023
Let us first say thank you to all the incredible people who we have worked with at OpenAI, our customers, our investors, and all of those who have been reaching out.
We too are still trying to figure out exactly…
the mission continues https://t.co/d1pHiFxcSe
— Sam Altman (@sama) November 20, 2023
Today I got a call inviting me to consider a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: to become the interim CEO of @OpenAI. After consulting with my family and reflecting on it for just a few hours, I accepted. I had recently resigned from my role as CEO of Twitch due to the birth of my…
— Emmett Shear (@eshear) November 20, 2023
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Fake, completely fabricated: MEA on report claiming 'secret memo' targeting Sikh separatists
New Delhi, Dec 11: India has described as "fake" and "completely fabricated" a media report claiming that a "secret memo" was issued by New Delhi in April to take "concrete" measures against certain Sikh separatists, including Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said on Sunday that the report is part of a "sustained disinformation campaign" against India and the outlet that published it is known for propagating "fake narratives" peddled by Pakistani intelligence.
The report was published by online American media outlet "The Intercept".
"We strongly assert that such reports are fake and completely fabricated. There is no such memo," Bagchi said.
"This is part of a sustained disinformation campaign against India. The outlet in question is known for propagating fake narratives peddled by Pakistani intelligence. The posts of the authors confirm this linkage," he added.
"Those who amplify such fake news do so only at the cost of their own credibility," Bagchi said, responding to media queries on the report.
In September, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau levelled the allegation of "potential" involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Khalistani extremist Nijjar on Canadian soil on June 18.
India strongly dismissed the charges, terming them "absurd".
"The Intercept", in its report, claimed that the Indian government issued instructions on a "crackdown scheme" against certain Sikh entities in western countries.
It further claimed that the secret memorandum issued by the MEA in April lists several "Sikh dissidents under investigation by India's intelligence agencies, including the Canadian citizen, Hardeep Singh Nijjar".
