Ex-Microsoft Intern, Now AMC’s CEO Praises Satya Nadella for “wartime management”
Radhika Gupta, a former intern at Microsoft who is now Managing Director and Chief Executive Editor of Edelweiss Asset Management Ltd., has praised Microsoft CEO Nadella. She worked as a programme manager (intern) during the summers of 2003 and 2004 for Microsoft Office. Her role involved coming up with ideas and creating new features.
Gupta now leads one of the fastest-growing asset management companies in India. Describing Nadella’s approach to the OpenAI crisis as “wartime management,” she emphasised that this type of leadership cannot be taught in any management class.
“And in the last 5 days, we saw wartime leadership from you, Satya, that no management class can teach and every CEO can learn from. Thank you, A former Microsoft intern,” expressed Gupta, citing a social media post by Nadella. In the post, Nadella acknowledged the challenging period following the board’s decision to remove CEO Sam Altman, a prominent figure in AI. Despite the uncertainties, Nadella ensured that the team stayed composed and dedicated to their mission.
Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, a key investor in OpenAI, initially supported Sam Altman’s return after reports of Altman’s exit surfaced. Nadella had apparently backed Altman’s decisions. According to various reports, Microsoft and Nadella were unaware of Altman’s removal. After Altman left, Nadella announced that Altman and Greg Brockman, the company’s co-founder, would lead a new advanced AI research team at Microsoft. He also hinted that other OpenAI staff might join, showing support for Altman and preventing them from going to rival companies like Google and Meta.
Altman later revealed he would come back to OpenAI with new board members. He initially joined Microsoft, thinking it was the best choice, but now, with Nadella’s support and a new board, he looked forward to a strong partnership between OpenAI and Microsoft.
“We are encouraged by the changes to the OpenAI board. We believe this is the first essential step on a path to more stable, well-informed, and effective governance. Sam, Greg, and I have talked and agreed they have a key role to play along with the OAI leadership team in ensuring OAI continues to thrive and build on its mission. We look forward to building on our strong partnership and delivering the value of this next generation of AI to our customers and partners,” Satya Nadella responded, clearing up the boardroom drama.
