FirstFT: Sam Altman returns

Stay informed with free updates

Simply sign up to the World myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox.

Ousted OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman will return to run the company he co-founded under the supervision of a new board, the leading generative artificial intelligence start-up said last night.

Greg Brockman, the co-founder and president who quit the company on Friday after Altman was fired, will return alongside him. However, it was not announced what role he would take up on his return.

Former Salesforce chief executive Bret Taylor will lead the new-look board as chair. Former US Treasury secretary Lawrence Summers has also been drafted in to provide experience. Adam D’Angelo, chief executive of question-and-answer platform Quora, will remain a board member.

OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever, technology entrepreneur Tasha McCauley and Helen Toner from the Center for Security and Emerging Technology at Georgetown University are not on the new board, according to the company.

The changes end a crisis at OpenAI that pitted most of the company’s employees against the board and led to the threat of legal action by some investors.

“I love OpenAI, and everything I’ve done over the past few days has been in service of keeping this team and its mission together,” Altman wrote on the social media site X in response to the announcement of his return. Read more on the changes at OpenAI.

And here’s what else I’m keeping tabs on today:

• Merger: US chipmaker Broadcom will complete its $69bn acquisition of cloud software company VMware after Beijing yesterday approved the deal.

• Economic data: New orders for durable goods, or those lasting more than one year, will be released as well as the number of new applications for US state unemployment aid for the week ending November 18.

• Results: The world’s largest agricultural equipment maker Deere reports results. Three months ago it said demand was cooling for some products in fast-growing markets.

• Central banks: Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem will speak about the cost of high inflation, with about two weeks to go until the central bank’s next interest rate decision.

• Military exercises: The US and the Philippines continue their joint air and sea patrols in the South China Sea for a second day. The exercises are the latest step in the two allies’ efforts to strengthen military co-operation.

• Netherlands election: Dutch voters head to the polls. An unexpected surge in support for the far right could pave the way for veteran anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders to play a pivotal role in the formation of the next government.

Five more top stories

1. Israel and Hamas have agreed a deal for the release of 50 civilian hostages in Gaza in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners and a four-day halt to hostilities. An additional day’s ceasefire has been agreed for every 10 hostages released after that, the parties involved said. The pause will mark the longest cessation of violence in Gaza since Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel and will be accompanied by an influx of humanitarian aid, including fuel, into Gaza. Here are the details of the deal.

2. Binance chief Changpeng Zhao has resigned and pleaded guilty to a US criminal charge of failure to protect against money laundering. The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange also pleaded guilty to criminal charges related to money laundering and breaching international financial sanctions, agreeing to pay more than $4.3bn in penalties. The US Treasury department said yesterday the exchange failed to report “well over 100,000 suspicious transactions”.

3. Hedge fund short sellers have suffered $43bn of losses during the recent rally in US and European stock markets. Investors have been caught out by a “painful” rebound in “low quality” stocks this month, said Barclays’ head of European equity strategy Emmanuel Cau. Bets against technology, healthcare and consumer discretionary stocks were among the most costly for hedge funds, S3’s data shows.

The Big Read

Leon Black co-founded the group that would become Apollo Global Management, one of the biggest private equity groups in the US. He also made the acquaintance of Guzel Ganieva, a former Russian model. Mark Vandevelde tells the story of how their relationship led to the downfall of one of Wall Street’s most powerful men.

What we’re also reading and listening to

• Law: David R Jones made Houston the nation’s insolvency capital before an undisclosed relationship forced his resignation and prompted calls for reform.

• When scientists cheat: There is a scientific fraud epidemic, writes Anjana Ahuja, but rooting out manipulation should not depend on dedicated amateurs who take personal legal risks for the greater good.

• Life and Art 🎧: In the latest episode of the FT’s new twice-weekly culture podcast, gardening columnist Robin Lane Fox shares advice on winter plant tending, indoors and out.

Chart of the day

Is a public debt disaster looming, asks Martin Wolf in his latest column. If so, will there be defaults, inflation, financial repression, or some combination of all three? To avoid such an outcome he offers this advice.

Take a break from the news

Charlene Prempeh meets Prince Gyasi, the first black photographer to shoot the all-star Pirelli calendar. His catalytic moments have included a viral 2018 iPhone shoot with actor Michaela Coel, a 2019 shoot for GQ with Nigerian singer Burna Boy and a 2021 cover story with Naomi Campbell for Madame Figaro.

Additional contributions from George Russell, Benjamin Wilhelm, Grace Ramos and Euan Healy