The company's CEO, Sam Altman, expressed his sentiments in a post: "This is incredibly sad for me; Ilya is undoubtedly one of the most brilliant minds of our era, a beacon in our field, and a close mate. I'm eternally thankful for his contributions here and remain dedicated to completing our mission together."
"His exceptional intellect and foresight are widely recognised; his kindness and empathy might be less known but are equally significant."
Altman stated that OpenAI wouldn't be the same without him. Even though he's off to work on something deeply personal, Altman is thankful for his time here and is committed to continuing the mission they began together.
"I'm delighted that I've had the chance to be near such an extraordinary talent, someone so dedicated to steering us towards the best possible future for humanity," said Altman.
OpenAI researcher Jakub Pachocki is set to step into Sutskever's role and take over his vacant office. Pachocki has been at the helm of many of OpenAI's key projects.
The New York Times reports that Ilya and three other board members attempted to oust Altman during a tumultuous weekend last November. Altman was reinstated as CEO five days later. Ilya has since expressed regret over the incident.