'Godfather of AI' Geoffrey Hinton Uses Nobel Acceptance Speech to Praise Firing of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman

Geoffrey Hinton, widely acclaimed as the “Godfather of AI,” accepted a Nobel Prize this week and used his speech to commend a former student for ousting OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, although Altman was reinstated soon after.

TechCrunch reports that Geoffrey Hinton, the pioneering researcher who recently accepted a Nobel Prize for his foundational work on artificial neural networks, took a moment during his acceptance speech to praise one of his former students for a surprising reason – firing OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

Hinton, whose groundbreaking research earned him the nickname “Godfather of AI,” expressed his pride in the accomplishments of his many talented students, particularly singling out one who made a bold move against the leadership of one of the most prominent AI companies in the world.

“I was particularly fortunate to have many very clever students – much cleverer than me – who actually made things work,” Hinton said in his speech. “They’ve gone on to do great things. I’m particularly proud of the fact that one of my students fired Sam Altman.”

The student Hinton alluded to is Ilya Sutskever, OpenAI’s former Chief Scientist. In November 2023, OpenAI’s board voted to remove Altman from his position as CEO, with Sutskever delivering the news to Altman via a video call. Although Sutskever later expressed regret over the manner in which the firing was handled, Hinton seems to view the event as a positive development for AI safety, a cause he frequently advocates for.

However, the victory was short-lived, as Altman has since regained control over OpenAI and may soon receive equity in the company. This turn of events has raised concerns among some in the AI community who believe that Altman’s leadership may not align with the principles of responsible AI development.

Sutskever later left the company, as Breitbart News previously reported:

The New York Times reports that in November, Sutskever joined other board members to force out CEO Sam Altman in a surprising move. Altman, a prominent figure in the tech industry, was reinstated five days later as the discord resolved. Sutskever, however, never returned to work after the board reaappointment. In a departure announcement, OpenAI stated that Sutskever had been “instrumental” to the company’s progress.

Sutskever, a renowned figure in the field of AI research, had been part of a breakthrough involving neural networks during his time as a graduate student at the University of Toronto. He joined forces with Elon Musk and others in founding OpenAI in 2015, as an AI research and development nonprofit. The company has been a pioneer in the field, developing technologies such as the well-known ChatGPT chatbot.