OpenAI cofounder and chief scientist Ilya Sutskever is stepping down from the company after nearly a decade, he announced Tuesday in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Sutskever expressed confidence in the company’s future, stating it will continue to develop technology that is “both safe and beneficial.”
Sutskever also mentioned he is “excited” about his next steps and would share more details “in due time.” Neither OpenAI nor Sutskever immediately responded to requests for comment from Business Insider.
In a post on X, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said, “Ilya and OpenAI are going to part ways. This is very sad to me; Ilya is easily one of the greatest minds of our generation, a guiding light of our field, and a dear friend. His brilliance and vision are well known; his warmth and compassion are less well known but no less important.”
Sutskever played a key role in some of OpenAI’s significant breakthroughs in generative AI. However, his position had been in doubt over the past six months following reports of his involvement in the failed board attempt to oust CEO and cofounder Sam Altman in November.
Days after Altman was removed by the board, Sutskever expressed regret for his role in the move. Altman returned to OpenAI as CEO just five days later.
Despite Sutskever’s apology, his position at the company remained tense. Two sources familiar with the situation told Business Insider in December that Sutskever had been essentially sidelined at OpenAI after the failed attempt to remove Altman as CEO.
Sutskever has previously raised concerns about the potential harm caused by AI models like ChatGPT. Last year, he launched a new team at OpenAI called Superalignment, aimed at ensuring AI models benefit humanity and do not cause harm.
Sutskever’s announcement coincides with OpenAI’s latest ChatGPT update, GPT-4o, which features improved voice and vision capabilities.
