OpenAI, an artificial intelligence company, is facing a significant upheaval in its legal team following the removal of its CEO, Sam Altman. Although Altman has since come back to OpenAI, this situation has led to the company's top legal executives, Jason Kwon (Chief Strategy Officer) and Che Chang (General Counsel), along with over 700 employees, threatening to leave if the current board does not step down. This unrest comes after a period of rapid expansion in OpenAI's legal and public policy staff, which more than doubled in size over the last year.

Recent high-profile additions to OpenAI's legal team include Chan Park, previously with Microsoft, who was appointed as the head of US policy and partnerships. Microsoft, holding a 49% stake in OpenAI, plans to employ Altman and co-founder Greg Brockman in a new in-house research team, following Brockman's resignation and Altman's dismissal.

OpenAI named Emmett Shear, former CEO of Twitch, as the interim chief executive to succeed Altman. Shear pledged to investigate the circumstances of Altman's departure.

The legal team at OpenAI has seen significant growth, with notable hires such as Gideon Myles from Dropbox as associate general counsel for patents and trademarks, and Friedrich “Fred” von Lohmann, a respected figure in intellectual property law, as associate general counsel for copyright. Additionally, Michael Trinh, a former Google executive, and Brendan Herron from Canva have joined the team in key legal roles.

OpenAI's legal department has been focused on various areas, including intellectual property, mergers, acquisitions, and privacy. The company has also engaged external legal advisers to navigate the complex legal landscape of generative AI, particularly in the realm of copyright law. Firms like Cooley, Latham & Watkins, and Morrison & Foerster have represented OpenAI in several copyright cases, while Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan is handling a trademark lawsuit for the company.

The company's unique structure, which involves a nonprofit board overseeing a for-profit entity with capped profits, has been a point of discussion and possibly a factor in the ongoing disputes within the organization. OpenAI has also engaged DLA Piper to lobby on its behalf in Washington, reflecting the company's increasing engagement with policy and legal issues at the governmental level.

This turmoil within OpenAI's legal team reflects the broader challenges and complexities faced by companies at the forefront of artificial intelligence, especially regarding intellectual property, policy, and governance.

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The return of leadership members, including Altman, has brought some relief to customers, as noted by Scott Bickley of Info-Tech Research Group. Yet, questions remain about the composition of the new board and the measures being taken to ensure organizational stability going forward.