Sam Altman—Altman failed to disclose to OpenAI board that he was legal owner of the OpenAI Startup Fund
While serving as an OpenAI board member and claiming to have no financial interest in the company, Sam Altman was listed as the legal owner of the OpenAI Startup Fund. Former board member Helen Toner stated he 'constantly was claiming to be an independent board member with no financial interest in the company' while concealing this ownership. The arrangement was described by OpenAI as temporary, but Altman did not inform the board. This undisclosed conflict was among the factors that led to his firing in November 2023.
Scoring Impact
| Topic | Direction | Relevance | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corporate Governance | -against | secondary | -0.50 |
| Undisclosed Conflicts | +toward | primary | -1.00 |
| Overall incident score = | -0.429 | ||
Score = avg(topic contributions) × significance (medium ×1) × confidence (0.57)
Evidence (1 signal)
Quartz reported Altman was legal owner of OpenAI Startup Fund while claiming no financial interest on the board
Quartz reported that Sam Altman was listed as the legal owner of the OpenAI Startup Fund while consistently claiming to be an independent board member with no financial interest in OpenAI. Former board member Helen Toner stated he was 'constantly claiming to be an independent board member with no financial interest in the company' while concealing this ownership.