OpenAI's recent decision to oust founder Sam Altman and appoint Mira Murati as interim CEO has sparked criticism and efforts to reinstate Altman, with Microsoft backing him as the biggest shareholder. Mira Murati, described as a "product person," has a background in engineering and product development, playing a pivotal role in OpenAI's groundbreaking projects. She supports diverse perspectives, including regulatory oversight, to ensure responsible AI development. The move reflects ongoing debates on AI governance and corporate leadership in the tech industry.
OpenAI, the renowned artificial intelligence (AI) research organization, recently made headlines as its board ousted founder Sam Altman and appointed Mira Murati as interim CEO. This unexpected move has drawn criticism from major clients and investors, with Microsoft reportedly working to reinstate Altman, the company's largest shareholder.
Mira Murati, who joined OpenAI in 2018, has played a pivotal role in the organization's evolution from a nonprofit research center to the business entity behind the global chatbot ChatGPT. With a background in engineering and product development, Murati's journey at OpenAI has been marked by her rise through various roles, culminating in her appointment as chief technology officer in 2022.
Born in Albania and holding a degree from Dartmouth College, Murati is described as a "product person" with a keen interest in advancing AI beyond research projects. In a recent interview with TIME Magazine, she emphasized the importance of incorporating diverse voices, including philosophers, social scientists, and regulators, into AI development.
"It’s important that we bring in different voices, like philosophers, social scientists, artists, and people from the humanities. It’s important for OpenAI and companies like ours to bring this into the public consciousness in a way that’s controlled and responsible. But we’re a small group of people, and we need a ton more input in this system and a lot more input that goes beyond the technologies—definitely regulators and governments and everyone else."
Murati has been a driving force behind some of OpenAI's groundbreaking projects, including the image-generator model DALL-3, the speech-recognition tool Whisper, and the latest version of the company's chatbot, GPT-4. Her engagement with product development is evident from her social media profile on X (formerly Twitter), where she exclusively discusses new features and product updates.
While Murati has not made public statements since the recent leadership changes at OpenAI, her past remarks highlight a commitment to responsible and inclusive AI development. The move to appoint her as interim CEO reflects the ongoing debates within the tech industry regarding AI governance, corporate leadership, and the role of diverse perspectives in shaping the future of artificial intelligence.
(ANA PAULA PEREIRA, COINTELEGRAPH, 2023)