LONDON: Britain’s payments regulator on Wednesday provisionally proposed a cap on cross-border interchange fees charged by Mastercard and Visa on transactions made between the UK and European

Sam Altman A clear winner in the whole debacle is, of course, Altman himself. Unceremoniously ejected from his post on Friday, Altman quickly rallied support from the vast majority of OpenAI’s staff, who signed what was essentially a loyalty pledge underscoring the deep rift between himself and the board. His return to OpenAI, in triumph over the board that summarily fired him, reflects a kind of personal vindication that’s only likely to bolster, for better or for worse, his carefully and intentionally constructed image as a charismatic visionary who is single-handedly unlocking the secrets of the universe.

Microsoft Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has sought to downplay the tech giant’s part in the crisis, insisting on Monday — before Altman’s reappointment — that whatever happens with OpenAI, “nothing changes.” Microsoft’s priority, Nadella said, was to ensure uninterrupted delivery of AI technology to its own customers, whether that meant Altman being hired by Microsoft or his reinstallation at OpenAI.

But Microsoft is hardly a disinterested party, having committed billions to OpenAI in a multi-year partnership that’s led to the tech giant integrating ChatGPT into Bing search and other Microsoft products. Now, Microsoft is poised to gain even more influence. Nadella hinted at this reality on Monday, signaling that if Altman were to return as OpenAI’s CEO, Microsoft would have a very strong opinion on how the AI startup is governed.

“One thing I’ll be very, very clear [about] is, we’re never going to get back into a situation where we get surprised like this ever again,” Nadella said. “If we go back to operating like on Friday, we will make sure we are very, very clear that the governance gets fixed in a way that we really have more surety and guarantee that we don’t have surprises.”Nadella has sought to downplay the tech giant’s part in the crisis, insisting on Monday — before Altman’s reappointment — that whatever happens with OpenAI, “nothing changes.” Microsoft’s priority, Nadella said, was to ensure uninterrupted delivery of AI technology to its own customers, whether that meant Altman being hired by Microsoft or his reinstallation at OpenAI.

But Microsoft is hardly a disinterested party, having committed billions to OpenAI in a multi-year partnership that’s led to the tech giant integrating ChatGPT into Bing search and other Microsoft products. Now, Microsoft is poised to gain even more influence. Nadella hinted at this reality on Monday, signaling that if Altman were to return as OpenAI’s CEO, Microsoft would have a very strong opinion on how the AI startup is governed.

“One thing I’ll be very, very clear [about] is, we’re never going to get back into a situation where we get surprised like this ever again,” Nadella said. “If we go back to operating like on Friday, we will make sure we are very, very clear that the governance gets fixed in a way that we really have more surety and guarantee that we don’t have surprises.”