- The SEC subpoenaed ChatGPT creator OpenAI in December as part of the investigation
- It follows Altman’s shocking ouster and quick return in the boardroom coup in November.
- The investigation relates to the board’s claim that Altman was not “consistently truthful”
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Federal regulators are investigating whether OpenAI investors were misled during the surprise firing and quick return of CEO Sam Altman, according to a new report.
The Securities and Exchange Commission sent a subpoena to the creator of ChatGPT in December, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The SEC has been examining Altman’s communications and is also seeking internal records of current and former OpenAI officers and directors, the outlet reported.
The investigation follows the decision by OpenAI’s former board of directors in November to fire Altman as CEO and oust him from the board. He returned as CEO days later after an employee and shareholder revolt.
The startup’s board of directors at the time said it “concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, which hindered his ability to exercise his responsibilities.”
Federal regulators are investigating whether OpenAI investors were misled during the surprise firing and quick return of CEO Sam Altman, according to a new report.
Ilya Sutskever led the board’s failed coup to oust Altman, who returned days later following an employee and shareholder revolt.
The Journal said some sources described the investigation as a predictable response to the former board’s claim in its November statement.
The report added that the SEC has not flagged any specific statements or communications from Altman that it considered misleading, citing one source.
Altman returned as CEO just days after his ouster, and OpenAI also unveiled a new initial board with former Salesforce co-CEO Bret Taylor as chairman.
SEC officials in New York have asked that some top OpenAI executives preserve internal documents while they conduct the investigation, the WSJ reported.
The SEC declined to comment on the possible investigation, while OpenAI and Microsoft did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The investigation comes as Altman is reportedly in talks to raise up to $7 billion for a gigantic-scale chip company.
It would be a staggering and unprecedented sum in the history of venture capital, larger than the current combined market capitalizations of Apple and Microsoft, and more than the annual GDP of Japan or Germany.
The Securities and Exchange Commission sent a subpoena to ChatGPT’s creator in December. SEC Chairman Gary Gensler is seen above
Altman is reportedly looking to solve some of the biggest challenges facing the rapidly expanding AI sector, including a shortage of the expensive computer chips needed to power large language models like OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
OpenAI also recently completed a deal that values the Microsoft-backed startup at $80 billion or more, the New York Times reported earlier this month.
Meanwhile, OpenAI hit the $2 billion annualized revenue mark in December, the Financial Times reported, citing two people with knowledge of the AI startup’s finances.
OpenAI believes it can more than double this figure by 2025, based on strong interest from enterprise customers looking to use its technology to adopt generative AI tools in the workplace, according to the report.
The company’s annualized revenue rose from $1.3 billion in mid-October, Information had previously reported, thanks to accelerated sales growth and its successful ChatGPT product.