ChatGPT company OpenAI sacks CEO Sam Altman

OpenAI, the company that created ChatGPT a year ago, has dismissed CEO Sam Altman.

In a statement on Friday, it said it no longer had confidence in Altman's ability to lead the Microsoft-backed firm.

Altman's shock departure "follows a deliberative review process by the board, which concluded that he was not consistently candid in his communications with the board, hindering its ability to exercise its responsibilities," a statement said.

OpenAI's Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati will serve as interim CEO, the company said, adding that it will conduct a formal search for a permanent CEO.

Backed by billions of dollars from Microsoft, OpenAI kicked off the generative AI craze last November by releasing its ChatGPT chatbot, which became one of the world's fastest-growing applications.

Altman was not immediately available for comment, while Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Shares of Microsoft, which has a stake in OpenAI, were down 1.91 percent at $368.93.

Trained on reams of data, generative AI can create brand-new humanlike content, helping users spin up term papers, complete science homework and even write entire novels.