When you move in the cover of darkness because the light may shine on your true intentions, things usually come into focus eventually. And this won’t end well for OpenAI/Altman. But ironically, this self destructive behaviour might end up being in the best interest of humanity. 🙏🏾
Altman seems to be a good manager and people chose to side with him. Of course there was a material motive too. People like a place where they are treated well and paid well.
Either way this is a footnote in history. The forces at play are huge.
Dec 9, 2023·edited Dec 9, 2023Liked by Gary Marcus
Well, maybe not "the key example" but *a* key example certainly, and one we know about - one with evidence on paper so to speak.
He took the easy way out, pulling strings behind peoples back instead of doing the bold and courageous thing. Sometimes it takes balls to be honest and face the (possible) consequences directly. You have to learn that it’s not as bad as you think and the worse-er option is, dare I say “weak”? Sometimes strong love means saying things people don’t want to hear, more , but in the long run and in the bigger picture, it’s the best, even if it seems for you personally in the short run, it’s not. Maybe I’m digressing here, but I see this situation a lot with myself and others, and even in the politics of cities....
I know people like Sam Altman. He controls information without giving a thought. He represents other people’s opinions, modifying them to match his own. And he subtly manipulates events to his own benefit. And when being subtle doesn’t work, he gets angry. I know the type.
When prompted to identify historical figures who share similar traits. GPT4 named, Niccolò Machiavelli for his use of ruthless power, Julius Caesar for his leadership and strategic mind that made him adept at manipulating political situations to his advantage, Catherine the Great known to adeptly maneuver through the male-dominated world of 18th-century European politics, Joseph Stalin, known for among other well known attributes, tight censorship and manipulation of information, and Queen Elizabeth, known for her political shrewdness and ability to maintain power in a difficult period. Well, perhaps GPT4 knows his/her creator very well.
Same thing with more details. So either new sources telling the same story to different publications, or the same sources getting more comfortable sharing specifics.
When you move in the cover of darkness because the light may shine on your true intentions, things usually come into focus eventually. And this won’t end well for OpenAI/Altman. But ironically, this self destructive behaviour might end up being in the best interest of humanity. 🙏🏾
Altman seems to be a good manager and people chose to side with him. Of course there was a material motive too. People like a place where they are treated well and paid well.
Either way this is a footnote in history. The forces at play are huge.
Well, maybe not "the key example" but *a* key example certainly, and one we know about - one with evidence on paper so to speak.
He took the easy way out, pulling strings behind peoples back instead of doing the bold and courageous thing. Sometimes it takes balls to be honest and face the (possible) consequences directly. You have to learn that it’s not as bad as you think and the worse-er option is, dare I say “weak”? Sometimes strong love means saying things people don’t want to hear, more , but in the long run and in the bigger picture, it’s the best, even if it seems for you personally in the short run, it’s not. Maybe I’m digressing here, but I see this situation a lot with myself and others, and even in the politics of cities....
This saga is filling the Succession-sized space in my head
There is no grand failure of trust, villains, or 4D chess games here. Just people playing their cards as they could.
It was a culture clash. Pragmatics won.
I know people like Sam Altman. He controls information without giving a thought. He represents other people’s opinions, modifying them to match his own. And he subtly manipulates events to his own benefit. And when being subtle doesn’t work, he gets angry. I know the type.
When prompted to identify historical figures who share similar traits. GPT4 named, Niccolò Machiavelli for his use of ruthless power, Julius Caesar for his leadership and strategic mind that made him adept at manipulating political situations to his advantage, Catherine the Great known to adeptly maneuver through the male-dominated world of 18th-century European politics, Joseph Stalin, known for among other well known attributes, tight censorship and manipulation of information, and Queen Elizabeth, known for her political shrewdness and ability to maintain power in a difficult period. Well, perhaps GPT4 knows his/her creator very well.
When ethics gets in the way of snake oil sales.
This was essentially in the new Yorker piece
Same thing with more details. So either new sources telling the same story to different publications, or the same sources getting more comfortable sharing specifics.
I saw it as the latter fwiw