OpenAI and Altman did not reply to requests for comment. Kholsa Ventures, an early backer of OpenAI, wants Altman back at OpenAI but "will back him in whatever he does next," the fund's founder Vinod Khosla posted on X on Saturday. Others expressed support for joining Altman in starting a company, a third person familiar with the matter said. Tech website The Verge earlier reported the OpenAI board's discussions with Altman to return as CEO. Forbes reported on Saturday investors were plotting to restore Altman as CEO.

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Persons: Sam Altman, Altman, Vinod Khosla, Altman's, Elon Musk, Greg Brockman, OpenAI, Brockman, Szymon Sidor, Sidor, Jony, SoftBank, Masayoshi Son, Brad Lightcap, Forbes, Krystal Hu, Anna Tong, Jeffrey Dastin, Gursimran, Chizu Nomiyama, Kenneth Li, William Mallard Organizations: Microsoft, Kholsa Ventures, Union, U.S, Altman, Reuters . Tech, Thomson Locations: OpenAI, New York, San Francisco, Gursimran Kaur, Bengaluru