OpenAI ditches non-profit controls as top execs leave ChatGPT creator

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ChatGPT creator OpenAI plans to shun its founding principles by completely overhauling its business structure to become a for-profit company, according to reports.

The restructuring aims to attract new investment to the artificial intelligence firm, Reuters reported, with co-founder and chief executive Sam Altman receiving equity worth up to $150 billion.

OpenAI first announced a “capped profit” structure in 2019, three years after it was founded, however it retained a non-profit board that served as the overall governing body for all activities.

“The nonprofit’s principal beneficiary is humanity, not OpenAI investors,” the company’s web page states.

A spokesperson for the company said: “We remain focused on building AI that benefits everyone, and we’re working with our board to ensure that we’re best positioned to succeed in our mission.

“The non-profit is core to our mission and will continue to exist“We remain focused on building AI that benefits everyone, and we’re working with our board to ensure that we’re best positioned to succeed in our mission. The non-profit is core to our mission and will continue to exist.”

Fellow OpenAI co-founder Elon Musk, who has frequently lamented the company’s shift away from its non-profit origins, shared a series of images showing OpenAI co-founders disappearing, with only Mr Altman remaining.

“Sam Altman is Little Finger,” Mr Musk wrote on X, referring to the villain from the TV series Game of Thrones.

“You can’t just convert a non-profit into a for-profit. That is illegal,” he added.

The news of the restructuring coincides with the departure of three top executives at the AI firm, including chief technology officer Mira Murati.

In a note to OpenAI employees, which she shared on X, Ms Murati said she had “made the difficult decision” to leave the company after six-and-a-half-years.

“There’s never an ideal time to step away from a place one cherishes, yet this moment feels right,” she wrote. “I’m stepping away because I want to create the time and space to do my own exploration.”

The other figures leaving the company are chief research officer Bob McGrew and research leader Barret Zoph.