Has Microsoft taken over management of OpenAI? President Brad Smith points clarification

Microsoft president Brad Smith clarified on Friday that the only real change in Microsoft’s position with OpenAI is its place as an observer on the AI firm’s board. He stated that having a non-voting observer on OpenAI’s board is distinct from an acquisition.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), Britain’s antitrust regulator, introduced on Friday that it’s going to assess whether or not Microsoft’s partnership with OpenAI constitutes an “acquisition of control,” indicating a overview of potential materials affect by one social gathering over one other.

“The only thing that has changed is that Microsoft will now have a non-voting observer on OpenAI’s Board, which is very different from an acquisition such as Google’s purchase of DeepMind in the UK,” Smith stated in a press release.

Microsoft President expressed dedication to collaborate carefully with the CMA, offering all the mandatory info.

The antitrust regulator is moreover assessing whether or not the deal has led to the institution of a related merger scenario.

The CMA stated, “There have recently been a number of developments in the governance of OpenAI, some of which involved Microsoft.”

“In light of these developments, the CMA is now issuing an ITC to determine whether the Microsoft / OpenAI partnership, including recent developments, has resulted in a relevant merger situation and, if so, the potential impact on competition.”

Microsoft has pledged an funding exceeding $10 billion in OpenAI, securing a 49 per cent possession stake within the firm.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman introduced on November 29 that Microsoft would maintain a non-voting observer place on OpenAI’s board, granting entry to confidential info with out voting rights.

This occurred after the OpenAI board briefly ousted Altman, nevertheless it did not sit nicely with Microsoft. CEO Satya Nadella introduced that Altman would be a part of Microsoft’s AI workforce.

However, in one other dramatic flip, Altman was reinstated as OpenAI chief, and the board was reconfigured.