Reuters

OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman will return to the ChatGPT-maker`s board along with three new directors, the world`s most prominent artificial intelligence company said on Friday.

An investigation by law firm WilmerHale into the events surrounding Altman`s November firing has concluded, and the company has created new governance rules and strengthened its conflict of interest policy. The board said it unanimously backed Altman`s leadership.

Employees, investors and OpenAI`s biggest financial backer, Microsoft MSFT.O, had expressed shock over Altman`s ouster, which was reversed within days.

OpenAI said on Friday it was appointing new directors including Altman, Sue Desmond-Hellmann, a former CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Nicole Seligman, a former president of Sony Entertainment, and Fidji Simo, CEO of Instacart.

Altman welcomed the new board members in a post on X, adding, "We have important work in front of us."

They will join current board members Adam D`Angelo, the CEO of Quora, former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and Chairman Bret Taylor, former co-CEO of Salesforce.

The investigation by WilmerHale found that Altman`s dismissal was not the result of concerns related to OpenAI`s finances, product safety or other issues.

"Instead it was a consequence of a breakdown in the relationship and loss of trust between the prior Board and Mr. Altman," OpenAI said, describing the law firm`s findings.

"WilmerHale found that the prior Board believed at the time that its actions would mitigate internal management challenges and did not anticipate that its actions would destabilize the Company," OpenAI said in a blog post.

"WilmerHale found that the prior Board acted within its broad discretion to terminate Mr. Altman, but also found that his conduct did not mandate removal," it added.