Mira Murati resigns as OpenAI’s Chief Technology Officer

Mira Murati, OpenAI’s Chief Technology Officer, has announced her resignation in a post on X (formerly Twitter). "After much reflection, I have made the difficult decision to leave OpenAI," she stated, sharing the message with colleagues at the company. She explained her departure by saying, "I’m stepping away because I want to create the time and space to do my own exploration."

I shared the following note with the OpenAI team today. pic.twitter.com/nsZ4khI06P

— Mira Murati (@miramurati) September 25, 2024

Murati, who joined OpenAI in 2017, briefly served as interim CEO during a period of instability last year. She attended Pearson United World College of the Pacific on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, graduating in 2005 on a scholarship. In recognition of her work in artificial intelligence and engineering, Dartmouth College awarded her an honorary Doctor of Science degree in June 2024.

Murati has held senior roles at companies, including Goldman Sachs, Zodiac Aerospace, and Tesla, where she served as Senior Product Manager for the Model X. After three years at Tesla, she transitioned to Leap Motion, taking on the role of Vice President of Product and Engineering. Since joining OpenAI, Murati has played an important role in advancing AI technologies at the company.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman responded to her post,  thanking her for her contributions and noting that further details on the leadership transition will be shared in the coming days. He shared a detailed note as well.

i just posted this note to openai:

Hi All–

Mira has been instrumental to OpenAI’s progress and growth the last 6.5 years; she has been a hugely significant factor in our development from an unknown research lab to an important company.

When Mira informed me this morning that…

— Sam Altman (@sama) September 26, 2024

The potential changes come after a turbulent year for the company's leadership. In November, CEO  Altman faced a brief but ultimately unsuccessful attempt by the board to remove him. Although specific details were not provided, some board members raised concerns over Altman’s approach to AI development, urging more caution.

Since then, several prominent researchers have departed, expressing similar worries about the company’s rapid AI advancement. Chief Scientist Ilya Sutskever and Head of Alignment Jan Leike left in May, while President Greg Brockman announced last month that he would be on sabbatical until the year’s end.