Co-founder of OpenAI, Ilya Sutskever, announces his departure from the company behind ChatGPT | WGN Radio 720

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — In a surprising move, OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever announced his departure from the company after nearly a decade. Sutskever, one of the original creators of the artificial intelligence technology behind ChatGPT, made the announcement on social media, citing a new project that is “very personally meaningful” to him.

Sutskever’s departure comes after a tumultuous period at OpenAI, where he was involved in the decision to push out CEO Sam Altman last fall, only to reinstate him shortly after. Altman expressed sadness at Sutskever’s departure, calling him “one of the greatest minds of our generation” and a “guiding light” in the field.

Replacing Sutskever as chief scientist at OpenAI is Jakub Pachocki, who Altman described as “easily one of the greatest minds of our generation.” Altman expressed confidence in Pachocki’s ability to lead the company towards its mission of ensuring that artificial general intelligence (AGI) benefits everyone.

AGI is a futuristic concept of machines that are as intelligent as humans or even surpass human capabilities in various tasks. OpenAI recently introduced an update to its AI model that can reason across text, audio, and video in real time.

The partnership between the Associated Press and OpenAI allows the company access to part of the AP’s text archives, showcasing the collaborative efforts between media and technology companies in advancing AI technology.