Microsoft Ends Weekend of OpenAI Drama With Coup of Its Own

After three days of high drama at the world’s most closely watched startup, which many compared to a coup, Microsoft Corp. capped the weekend with one of its own: The software giant hired ousted OpenAI chief Sam Altman.

The moves reshape the world of artificial intelligence given that OpenAI is behind the hugely popular ChatGPT app that took generative AI into the mainstream, and Altman was its figurehead.

He was unexpectedly fired by OpenAI’s board on Friday, setting off a frenzied weekend campaign to reinstate him, led by OpenAI executives and key investors — including Satya Nadella, the ...