OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, and its co-founder Sam Altman have had a busy week in New York.

Altman, who helped start OpenAI as a nonprofit research lab back in 2015, was removed as CEO Friday in a sudden and mostly unexplained exit that stunned the industry. And while his chief executive title was swiftly reinstated just days later, a lot of questions are still up in the air.

If you are getting up to date on the OpenAI situation and what it means for the field of artificial intelligence, this is the appropriate resource. Here is a summary of the essential information.

Altman is one of the founders of OpenAI, a company located in San Francisco that created ChatGPT. This chatbot is currently widely used in various fields, from education to healthcare.

Over the past year, ChatGPT has rapidly gained popularity and brought attention to Altman as a leading figure in the commercialization of generative AI. This technology has the ability to create new images, text passages, and other forms of media. Altman’s expertise on the potential risks and benefits of this technology has made him a highly sought-after voice in Silicon Valley, and has helped elevate OpenAI to a globally recognized startup.

However, Altman’s role at OpenAI faced some challenges during the chaotic events of the previous week. On Friday, he was dismissed as CEO, but shortly after, he returned to his position with a newly appointed board of directors.

During this period, Microsoft, with significant investments in OpenAI and access to its current technology, played a significant role in Altman’s comeback. They swiftly recruited both Altman and another co-founder and former president of OpenAI, Greg Brockman, who had previously left in protest of the CEO’s removal. In addition, numerous OpenAI staff members expressed their intention to quit.

Both Altman and Brockman announced their comeback to the company through posts on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, early Wednesday morning.

There is still much that is unclear about Altman’s initial removal. The statement released on Friday stated that he was not consistently honest in his interactions with the former board of directors, who declined to share further specifics.

The announcement caused a big impact in the AI community. This may lead to concerns about trust in a rapidly growing technology that remains unclear to many individuals, especially due to the reputations of OpenAI and Altman as key players in this field.

According to Johann Laux, a specialist at the Oxford Internet Institute who specializes in human supervision of artificial intelligence, the recent OpenAI incident highlights the current vulnerability of the AI community and the need to address its potential dangers.

The chaos further emphasized the contrasts between Altman and the former board members of the company, who have shared different opinions on the potential safety hazards of advancing AI technology.

Many professionals emphasize that this situation emphasizes the importance of governments, rather than large technology corporations, taking the lead in regulating AI. This is especially crucial for rapidly advancing technologies such as generative AI.

Enza Iannopollo, a principal analyst at Forrester, stated that recent events have not only put OpenAI’s efforts to implement ethical corporate governance at risk, but also illustrated how even well-intended corporate governance can be overshadowed by the dynamics and interests of other corporations.

According to Iannopollo, the main takeaway is that companies cannot single-handedly ensure the necessary level of safety and trust in AI for society. He emphasizes the importance of rules and regulations, collaboratively developed with companies and strictly enforced by regulators, in order for us to reap the benefits of AI.

Instead of following pre-set rules, generative AI (such as chatbots like ChatGPT) has the ability to generate something original while processing data and performing tasks.

Technology companies continue to hold the dominant role in regulating AI and addressing its potential risks, as governments worldwide strive to catch up.

Negotiators in the European Union are making final adjustments to what is anticipated to be the first set of comprehensive regulations for artificial intelligence. However, there have been reports of delays due to debates surrounding the inclusion and regulations for highly debated and groundbreaking AI products, such as commercialized large-language models like ChatGPT, which are integral to generative AI systems.

In 2021, the initial draft legislation from Brussels primarily addressed AI with specific applications and barely mentioned chatbots. However, officials are now working quickly to determine how to include these systems, also referred to as foundation models, in the final version.

Last month, President Joe Biden of the United States signed a bold executive order that aims to find a balance between the demands of advanced technology companies and the concerns of national security and consumer protection.

The directive, which may require additional action from Congress, is a preliminary measure aimed at guaranteeing the reliability and usefulness of AI, rather than allowing it to be deceitful and harmful. Its goal is to guide the development of AI in a way that allows companies to benefit while also protecting public safety.

Source: wral.com