Tech biggie Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) has bagged a non-voting seat on the new board of OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT. Sam Altman marked his official return as the CEO of OpenAI yesterday and wrote about the recent updates in a memo to employees. Microsoft, which has a 49% stake in the artificial intelligence (AI) leader, was shocked by the sudden ouster of Altman. Since then, the Bing maker has stressed the importance of maintaining a vigilant presence on the board.
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Microsoft can now have a representative on OpenAI who can attend board meetings and have hands-on access to confidential information but cannot vote on matters such as elections and strategic decisions. Microsoft has not yet disclosed the person who will be its representative on OpenAI.
Apart from its $13 billion investment in OpenAI, Microsoft has integrated ChatGPT into Office and other tools. This effectively implies that all happenings at OpenAI could end up having big implications for Microsoft’s functioning.
Other Changes at OpenAI
Altman also noted that Greg Brockman has returned as President, and Mira Maruti, who was hailed as interim CEO, has returned as OpenAI’s Chief Technology Officer. Meanwhile, the newly formed board, including Chairman Bret Taylor, ex-CEO of Salesforce (NASDAQ:CRM), former board member Adam D’Angelo, and ex-Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, will work towards building a diversified and sustainable board. The new board is expected to strengthen OpenAI’s governance structure so that all stakeholders “can trust that OpenAI will continue to thrive,” Altman added.
The CEO also expressed his happiness that the generative AI firm had not lost a single employee or customer while the drama was ongoing.
Is Microsoft Share a Good Buy?
Wall Street is indeed bullish about Microsoft’s share price trajectory. Microsoft’s dominance in the cloud computing segment, coupled with AI tools and its leading Office Suite offerings, makes it one of the best-positioned stocks to consider.
On TipRanks, MSFT stock has a Strong Buy consensus rating backed by 33 Buys versus one Hold rating. Also, the average Microsoft price target of $412.03 implies 8.8% upside potential from current levels. Year-to-date, MSFT stock has gained 59.5%.
