Apple will join the OpenAI board as an observer
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Apple will join the OpenAI board as an observer
The role of board observer will place Apple on par with Microsoft, and this collaborative model could become a trend for future cooperation among tech companies in the field of artificial intelligence.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsBy Tabby Kinder
The board observer role will place Apple on equal footing with Microsoft, and this collaborative model could become a trend for how tech companies work together in the field of artificial intelligence.
Apple will join the OpenAI board as an observer, giving the iPhone maker insight into the AI startup similar to that enjoyed by its biggest backer, Microsoft.
The board seat is part of an agreement between Apple and OpenAI, announced last month, to integrate ChatGPT into Apple devices. Apple CEO Tim Cook said the partnership would be part of a suite of AI features, including an enhanced Siri voice assistant, representing the "next big step" in incorporating the technology into its products.
Phil Schiller, Apple’s head of the App Store and a member of its executive team since 1997, will take on the board observer role later this year, according to people familiar with the matter, first reported by Bloomberg. Neither OpenAI nor Apple commented.
The observer role allows Schiller to attend OpenAI board meetings but not vote on any board decisions. This puts Apple in the same position as Microsoft, which also secured a non-voting observer seat last year.
As part of their strategic partnership, Microsoft has invested approximately $13 billion in OpenAI, enabling the developer of ChatGPT to access Microsoft's vast computing and cloud resources while maintaining independent operations.
Under the terms of the agreement, Microsoft is entitled to about half of OpenAI’s profits until its investment is recouped.
OpenAI restructured its board in March, following the dramatic reinstatement of founder and CEO Sam Altman, who was briefly ousted in November. A review of the board turmoil found no evidence that he misled investors or pushed product releases at unsafe speeds—concerns that had led to his dismissal and swift return days later.
OpenAI also added three new board members: Instacart CEO Fidji Simo, former Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation head Sue Desmond-Hellmann, and former Sony Entertainment president Nicole Seligman. Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers was appointed to the board late last year, and Quora CEO Adam D'Angelo, a former board member, remains on the board.
At a time when tech giants including Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta are racing to develop new AI-powered products—and competing with or partnering alongside startups focused on the technology—U.S. antitrust regulators have taken notice, requesting information about collaborations between Big Tech and emerging AI firms.
Apple will not pay OpenAI for using ChatGPT, but the deal grants the startup access to hundreds of millions of users. Apple’s suite of generative AI features, dubbed “Apple Intelligence,” is expected to launch later this year.
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