Mira Murati, the former CTO of OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, told a U.S. court that the company’s current CEO, Sam Altman, instilled mistrust among top executives. She also accused Altman of “creating chaos” and, at times, misleading her and others. Murati’s taped testimony was played in the federal court on May 6 as the lawsuit filed by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk against OpenAI continues.
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During the high-stakes trial, Murati alleged that Altman often turned executives against one another and weakened her role as CTO. She added that her concern was about Altman giving different versions of the same issue to various people, which deepened tensions within the firm.
Even so, Murati said she still wanted Altman to remain CEO and urged board members to give clearer reasons for his removal in 2023. According to her, OpenAI was at serious risk of falling apart at the time, and she feared the firm could break down completely.
Murati briefly served as OpenAI’s interim CEO after Altman was temporarily ousted in 2023. Her exit was part of a larger senior staff departure, including Chief Research Officer Bob McGrew and research leader Barret Zoph, both of whom left shortly after her.
In addition, her exit came at a time when OpenAI was reportedly weighing a shift toward a for-profit structure, a move that is now at the core of the legal case Musk brought against the firm.
OpenAI’s Ex-Board Member Raises ChatGPT Launch Issues
A one-time OpenAI board member, Shivon Zilis, also testified on the same day as Murati. She alleged that there was internal tension when the startup prepared to launch its ChatGPT chatbot.
She said OpenAI’s board “voiced extreme concern” about releasing ChatGPT “without any proper board communication.” When asked if she had raised concerns about Altman internally, Zilis said there had been a couple of such instances.
Her testimony added to Murati’s claims of leadership tensions before the 2023 board crisis. It also drew attention due to her former role on OpenAI’s board and her current work as a long-time executive at Musk’s firms, Tesla (TSLA) and Neuralink.
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