Geoffrey Hinton accepted a Nobel Prize this week, recognizing the foundational work on artificial neural networks that earned him the nickname “godfather of AI.” In a speech Tuesday, Professor Hinton praised one student – alluding to OpenAI’s former Chief Scientist, Ilya Sutskever – for revolting against OpenAI’s CEO.
“I was particularly fortunate to have many very clever students – much cleverer than me – who actually made things work,” said Hinton. “They’ve gone on to do great things. I’m particularly proud of the fact that one of my students fired Sam Altman.”
Of course, Hinton is referring to OpenAI’s board voting to fire Altman in November 2023. Sutskever delivered the news to Altman via video call, but later said he regretted it. Hinton seems to have celebrated the firing of OpenAI’s CEO as a win for AI safety, which he often advocates for. However, the win was short-lived, as Altman now has more control over OpenAI than before, and he could soon get equity.