A core engineer behind OpenAI ’s viral text-to-video model , Sora, has returned to the company after a hiatus to launch a new team dedicated to pursuing Artificial Superintelligence (ASI). Will DePue , a key contributor to Sora, has announced that he is joining forces with fellow Sora engineers Troy Luhman and Eric Luhman to tackle a “high-risk” goal.
“After a long break, i’m back at openai to start a new team with @troyluhman and @eric_luhman1 focused on an incredibly high-risk bet that has a small, but significant, chance of leading to ASI,” he said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
What is Artificial Superintelligence
Artificial ASI is a theoretical advancement where AI can reason and innovate far beyond human capability. This looks beyond the company's existing public goal of achieving Artificial General Intelligence ( AGI )—the point where AI can reason like a human.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman articulated the company’s forward-looking focus on superintelligence earlier this year, stating that “Superintelligent tools could massively accelerate scientific discovery and innovation well beyond what we are capable of doing on our own.”
DePue, who is on leave from his computer science studies at the University of Michigan, originally joined OpenAI in July 2023, where he trained ChatGPT models and developed Sora, according to a report by Business Insider.
Key details of ‘new’ ASI team in OpenAI
Details about the new team’s structure remain scarce, as OpenAI has not yet released an official statement. However, DePue noted that the team would remain small and highly selective.
“We're keeping the team tight but we're open to high-slope researchers & engineers interested in making progress in uncharted territory,” he wrote.
DePue, Troy Luhman, and Eric Luhman were part of the core group that developed Sora, which was publicly launched in December last year, with Sora 2 following in September.
“After a long break, i’m back at openai to start a new team with @troyluhman and @eric_luhman1 focused on an incredibly high-risk bet that has a small, but significant, chance of leading to ASI,” he said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
What is Artificial Superintelligence
Artificial ASI is a theoretical advancement where AI can reason and innovate far beyond human capability. This looks beyond the company's existing public goal of achieving Artificial General Intelligence ( AGI )—the point where AI can reason like a human.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman articulated the company’s forward-looking focus on superintelligence earlier this year, stating that “Superintelligent tools could massively accelerate scientific discovery and innovation well beyond what we are capable of doing on our own.”
DePue, who is on leave from his computer science studies at the University of Michigan, originally joined OpenAI in July 2023, where he trained ChatGPT models and developed Sora, according to a report by Business Insider.
Key details of ‘new’ ASI team in OpenAI
Details about the new team’s structure remain scarce, as OpenAI has not yet released an official statement. However, DePue noted that the team would remain small and highly selective.
“We're keeping the team tight but we're open to high-slope researchers & engineers interested in making progress in uncharted territory,” he wrote.
DePue, Troy Luhman, and Eric Luhman were part of the core group that developed Sora, which was publicly launched in December last year, with Sora 2 following in September.
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