Bayo Ogunlesi, Chairman of Global Infrastructure Partners listens as US President Donald Trump speaks during a strategic and policy discussion with executives at the State Department Library in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on April 11, 2017 in Washington, DC.
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OpenAI said on Tuesday that Adebayo Ogunlesi, a senior managing director at… Black Rockjoins the startup's board of directors, the latest announcement in the company's move toward a for-profit structure.
Ogunlesi is a founding partner of Global Infrastructure Partners, an infrastructure investment firm acquired From BlackRock last year for $12 billion. Before helping to found GIP in 2006, Ogunlesi spent 23 years at Credit Suisse.
“The rapid progress and development of artificial intelligence provides a unique opportunity to build a better future,” Ogunlesi said in Tuesday’s OpenAI announcement. “As part of this, thoughtful strategies and investment in infrastructure will be key to unlocking the full potential of AI and delivering its benefits in a responsible manner. I am excited to contribute to this effort and look forward to being part of the OpenAI Board of Directors.”
For OpenAI, the addition of Ogunlesi to its board represents another step in its dramatic transformation into a for-profit company. The board has been almost completely revamped since late 2023, when CEO Sam Altman was CEO He was suddenly ousted Before it was Returned quickly.
former Sales force Co-CEO Brett Taylor, who was president of Twitter before it was bought Elon MuskHe became president of OpenAI after the Altman ordeal in November 2023. Larry Summers, the former Treasury secretary, joined at the same time. Last year, the council added several New faces Included Instacart CEO Fidji Simo and Dr. Sue Desmond-Hellman, former CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, now known as the Gates Foundation.
OpenAI, which was founded as a nonprofit in 2015, said in late December that it would do so creates A public benefit corporation to oversee business operations, removing some of the nonprofit's restrictions and allowing it to operate like a high-growth startup.
Last year, OpenAI was rated at $157 billion It continued to roll out major updated language models and new tools after launching its generative AI boom in late 2022.
By converting to a Delaware PBC with “common shares of stock,” the company said, it can continue business operations while hiring employees separately for its nonprofit arm and allowing that wing to conduct charitable activities in healthcare, education, and science, OpenAI. he said in December.
Musk, one of the founders of OpenAI is prosecution To try to prevent OpenAI from turning into a full-fledged for-profit company.
Ogunlesi's other board positions include BlackRock, Topgolf Callaway Brands, Cosmos Energy Holdings and Terminal Investment Ltd.
— CNBC's Hayden Field contributed to this report.
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