Why OpenAI is trying to untangle its 'bespoke' corporate structure

On the Friday after Christmas, OpenAI published a blog post titled "Why OpenAI's structure must evolve to advance our mission." In it, the company detailed a plan to reorganize its for-profit arm into a public benefit corporation (PBC). In the weeks since that announcement, I've spoken to some of the country's leading corporate law experts to gain a better understanding of OpenAI's plan, and, more importantly, what it might mean for its mission to build safe artificial general intelligence (AGI). What is a public benefit corporation? "Public benefit corporations are a relatively recent addition to the universe of business entity types," says Jens Dammann , professor of corporate law at the University of Texas School of Law. Depending on who you ask, you may get a different history of PBCs, but in the dominant narrative, they came out of a certification program created by a nonprofit called B Lab . Companies that complete a self-assessment and pay an annual fee to B Lab can carry the ... Read full article.