Meet Mira Murati: The CTO Who Resigned From Microsoft-Backed OpenAI

Mira Murati, the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of OpenAI, announced her resignation from the Microsoft-backed organization via a post on X. After spending six-and-a-half years at the company, she explained that her decision came after “much reflection.”

About Mira Murati

Born on December 16, 1988, Murati’s academic journey began when she earned a scholarship to attend Pearson United World College of the Pacific in Canada at the age of 16. She later pursued higher education, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts (AB) in Mathematics from Colby College and a Bachelor of Engineering from the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College.

Murati’s career started as a “Summer Analyst” intern at Goldman Sachs. She later worked as an “Advanced Concepts Engineer” at Zodiac Aerospace before joining Tesla as a “Senior Product Manager.” In 2018, she joined OpenAI as VP of “Applied AI & Partnerships,” eventually being promoted to CTO. During her tenure, she led product development, including the creation of GPT-4.

In an earlier interview with ‘Time’, Murati discussed the potential dangers of AI, emphasizing the importance of considering its societal impact. She said, “There are … a ton of questions around societal impact, and there are a lot of ethical and philosophical questions that we need to consider. And it’s important that we bring in different voices, like philosophers, social scientists, artists, and people from the humanities.”

In her resignation post, Murati expressed gratitude to several individuals, including OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, for his “trust” in her. Explaining her decision, she wrote, “I’m stepping away because I want to create the time and space to do my own exploration. For now, my primary focus is doing everything in my power to ensure a smooth transition, maintaining the momentum we’ve built.”

She added, “While I may no longer be in the trenches with you, I will still be rooting for you all. With deep gratitude for the friendships forged, the triumphs achieved, and most importantly, the challenges overcome together.”