Sam Altman

Even After Freaky Friday, Microsoft is Still the AI King

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, was abruptly fired, causing chaos akin to a reality TV show with drama and theater. This spectacle is unfolding in real-time on Twitter, with the intensity of a video game. Amid the shifting ambitions, desires, and recriminations of all involved, one man stands out — Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. 

He has been in the news as much as the OpenAI board, OpenAI co-founders, and Sam himself. Satya has been part of all options. Sam and OpenAI’s former CTO, Greg Brockman, could join Microsoft to run an AI research lab. Microsoft could hire all those employees who want to leave OpenAI. Microsoft and Satya would support OpenAI in putting Humpty Dumpty together and pretending that the past few days didn’t happen.

This man is central to all conversations. What makes untying this Gordian knot his problem? This is the central and perhaps the most pertinent question.

Continue reading...Continue reading Even After Freaky Friday, Microsoft is Still the AI King

Technology
0 comments

Foundational Risks of OpenAI

Even for a region accustomed to tremors, the news of Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, being unceremoniously ousted from the company was like an event off the Richter scale. His exit was announced in a terse press release, along with Greg Brockman’s demotion from the chairman of the board. This sent shockwaves across Silicon Valley and the entire technology ecosystem. The board named CTO Mira Murati as the interim chief executive.

Like everyone else, I found the news hard to believe. Sam Altman fired? How could Altman, the renowned face of this high-profile company, be out? Just a day or two ago, he was mingling with leaders from APEC, taking swipes at rivals at Grok and Google. Altman has been the man since OpenAI released ChatGPT a year ago, marking it as the most interesting development in Silicon Valley since the iPhone and Facebook.

Throughout the afternoon, details emerged in

Continue reading...Continue reading Foundational Risks of OpenAI

Technology
0 comments

A Letter from Om. Issue #11/2023

Hi! In case you are new around here, I’m Om. In this letter, I share my latest thoughts, articles worth reading from around the web, my recommendations & occasionally, my photography. In this issue, I address the following:

The recent mini-break was refreshing and rejuvenating. It allowed me to reflect on my friend Sean Gourley’s wise words. Just as in fast food, if the time taken to consume information surpasses creation time, it’s not worthwhile. This notion was the backdrop of my writing hiatus and deliberate distancing from social media. 

My time and energy were devoted to diving into long-form journalism, perusing magazine articles, and whittling down my hefty reading list. Concurrently, I took neglected books off the shelf, and with a preference for the traditional fountain pen, I embraced the tactile practice of jotting down thoughts, nurturing

Continue reading...Continue reading A Letter from Om. Issue #11/2023

A Letter From Om
1 comments