FTX exec jailed and PwC named first ChatGPT reseller

Musk opposed Biden’s China EV tariffs

Tesla boss Elon Musk has criticised Joe Biden’s decision to quadruple tariffs on electric vehicles imported from China, despite previously calling for trade barriers himself.

The multi-billionaire said via video link, “Neither Tesla nor I asked for these tariffs,” at a technology conference in Paris.

Last week, the White House said new measures, including a 100% tariff on EVs from China, were a response to unfair policies and intended to protect US jobs.

Musk has previously warned that Chinese car makers could “demolish” competitors unless governments imposed trade barriers. However, at the conference on Thursday, the Tesla chief expressed surprise at the move, adding: “Things that inhibit freedom of exchange or distort the market are not good.”

Read more…

FTX exec jailed for 90 months

Ryan Salame, the former right-hand man of jailed FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, has been sentenced to 90 months in prison, US federal prosecutors said.

Salame, who had served as co-CEO of FTX’s Bahamian subsidiary, pleaded guilty in September last year to violating political campaign finance laws and operating an illegal money-transmitting business.

“Salame’s involvement in two serious federal crimes undermined public trust in American elections and the integrity of the financial system,” Damian Williams, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement.

It follows Bankman-Fried’s 25-year conviction for stealing $8bn (£6.3bn) from FTX customers, which was revealed when the crypto exchange collapsed in 2022.

Read more…

PwC becomes first ChatGPT reseller

PwC has signed a deal with OpenAI to offer its ChatGPT Enterprise licences to its business partners.

OpenAI has not previously offered Enterprise licences through a third party, and the agreement means PwC can also upsell its portfolio of services to those who want to use ChatGPT to optimise their workloads.

Not only does the management consulting giant become OpenAI’s first reseller partner, but it will also become the tech firm’s biggest customer to date, covering 100,000 users.

Read more…

Former OpenAI board member sheds light on Altman firing

A former board member of OpenAI has defended the ChatGPT firm’s shock decision to sack founder Sam Altman last year, accusing the CEO of “outright lying to the board.”

OpenAI quickly reversed its November decision to remove Altman following an outcry from inside and outside the organisation, but according to former board member Helen Toner, the directors had not taken the initial decision lightly. They claimed the founder had lied to, obstructed, and retaliated against those who criticised him, creating “a toxic atmosphere.”

“The [OpenAI] board is a nonprofit board that was set up explicitly for the purpose of making sure that the company’s public good mission was primary — was coming first over profits, investor interests, and other things,” Toner said to The TED AI Show host Bilawal Sidhu.

“But for years, Sam had made it really difficult for the board to actually do that job by, you know, withholding information, misrepresenting things that were happening at the company, in some cases outright lying to the board.”

When Altman returned to the company just days after his sacking, he brought with him an entirely new board of directors.

Read more…