Is ChatGPT losing its shine? |
Sam Altman has always been a charmer. At school he revelled in the art of persuasion, joining a school debate team and taking part in national tournaments. After charming his teachers, Altman graduated into charming investors, launching a startup at just 19 before working his way up to become president of Silicon Valley’s premier startup incubator, Y Combinator.
Few startups in history have burned through cash as fast as OpenAI, which last year managed to spend more on marketing and employee share options alone than it made in overall sales
Few startups in history have burned through cash as fast as OpenAI, which last year managed to spend more on marketing and employee share options alone than it made in overall sales
When he later joined OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, his charm was key to recruiting a team of some of the brightest coders and scientists in the world. But for some who worked close to him, the charm started to rub off: they realised he was very good at telling them what they wanted to hear.
Two years ago, these observations came to a head. OpenAI’s board grew frustrated with Altman’s behaviour. They accused him of saying one thing to some staff and the complete opposite to others. This........