In a shocking turn of events, the CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altman, was abruptly fired on Friday, leaving the artificial intelligence industry in a state of upheaval. Greg Brockman, the company's co-founder and former president, revealed that he was also demoted and subsequently resigned following Altman's dismissal. The swift leadership change took place amidst growing tensions between Altman and members of the OpenAI board.

CNN contributor Kara Swisher, who spoke with sources knowledgeable about the crisis, highlighted the key factor that led to Altman's ouster. The OpenAI board, advocating for a more cautious approach to AI development, clashed with Altman, who favored a more aggressive push in the field. Swisher described this as an "inflection moment" where Altman's ambitions may have exceeded the board's comfort level. The recent developer conference and the revelation of ChatGPT, a tool that allows users to create their own versions of OpenAI's language model, further exacerbated concerns for Ilya Sutskever, OpenAI's chief scientist.

The sequence of events leading to Altman's termination was detailed in a joint statement by Brockman and Altman. Altman received a text message requesting his attendance at a meeting the following day, with no knowledge of its purpose until just 30 minutes prior. At the meeting, Altman was informed by Sutskever that he was being fired, and the news was to be made public imminently. Shortly after, Brockman received a text from Sutskever, notifying him of his removal from the board while assuring him of his continued role within the company. OpenAI then published a blog post announcing the changes.

OpenAI, in announcing Altman's firing, cited his lack of candor with the board as hindering their ability to fulfill their responsibilities. However, Altman's sudden removal left important partners, such as Microsoft, in the dark. Microsoft, a significant investor in OpenAI and an integrator of its technology into their Bing search engine, was only informed of Altman's firing moments before the public announcement. Employees within the company were similarly caught off guard, receiving no advance warning.

Following Altman's dismissal, more than 500 OpenAI employees signed a letter obtained by CNN, calling for the resignation of the OpenAI board. They accused the board of mishandling Altman's firing and expressed their inability to work with individuals they deemed lacking in competence, judgment, and care for the company's mission and employees. The employees also threatened to quit and follow Altman to Microsoft unless the board resigns and both Altman and Brockman are reinstated.

Among the signatories of the letter were Mira Murati, who had been named interim successor to Altman by the board, and Ilya Sutskever, who had been reportedly involved in Altman's dismissal. However, Murati's promotion was subsequently overshadowed by the appointment of Emmett Shear, the co-founder of Twitch, as the incoming interim CEO.

As news of the letter circulated, Sutskever took to X to express remorse for his role in the leadership crisis. He apologized for the board's actions and pledged to do everything possible to reunite the company, emphasizing his love for what they had collectively built.

This ongoing saga continues to unfold, and CNN has reached out to OpenAI for comment regarding the accounts of Brockman and Swisher. The future of OpenAI hangs in the balance as the company grapples with internal turmoil and the potential exodus of its talented employees.