Before CEO Altman’s firing, OpenAI researchers warned board of AI breakthrough that may threaten humanity

Before Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, was temporarily removed from his position, a group of researchers at the company sent a serious warning to the board of directors. They had discovered a new artificial intelligence (AI) that could be very powerful and might pose a threat to people. This discovery was part of the reason why the board decided to fire Altman. However, Altman's popularity was evident when over 700 employees threatened to leave OpenAI and join Microsoft, showing their support for him. Altman was later reinstated as CEO. nnThe AI in question, known as Q*, was believed to be a significant breakthrough in the quest for artificial general intelligence (AGI), which is a type of AI that's smarter than humans. Q* showed promise by solving math problems at a level that young students would, which made the researchers hopeful about its potential. However, the details of Q*'s abilities and the concerns raised in the researchers' letter to the board remain confidential. nnThe concept of AGI has been a topic of debate among experts, with some worrying about the dangers of machines that are too intelligent. Despite these concerns, Altman had been leading OpenAI to new heights, with ChatGPT becoming one of the fastest-growing software applications ever. He secured investments and resources from Microsoft to advance towards AGI. Altman expressed his excitement about nearing AGI at a summit, but shortly after, he was dismissed by the board.