Why a Giant from US Treasury and Harvard President Joined OpenAI Board...

Economist Larry Summers Shows Interest in Joining OpenAI
"Has Shown Significant Interest in IT and Tech Since the Past"
Also Known as the Advisor to Lee Chang-yong, Governor of the Bank of Korea

Lawrence Summers (Larry Summers, 68), a 'prominent economist' who served as U.S. Treasury Secretary during the Bill Clinton administration, president of Harvard University, and recipient of numerous awards, has attracted attention by joining the board of directors of the AI research company OpenAI.

According to reports from the U.S. Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and Bloomberg, Summers was named in the OpenAI board restructuring plan. He is expected to serve as a director of OpenAI alongside Brett Taylor, CEO of the U.S. software development company Salesforce, and Adam D'Angelo, CEO of the online knowledge Q&A service company Quora.

Summers is already a well-known figure in the U.S. business world. First of all, his family background is exceptional. His father was an economics professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and his mother was a business professor at the same university. His uncle was Paul Samuelson, a Nobel laureate in economics and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). His maternal uncle was also a Nobel laureate in economics, Kenneth Arrow, a professor at Stanford University.

Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers
[Photo by AP Yonhap News]

Summers became the youngest tenured professor in Harvard's history at the age of 28 and eventually served as the 27th president of Harvard University. He was also the doctoral advisor to Lee Chang-yong, Governor of the Bank of Korea. He served as U.S. Treasury Secretary during the Bill Clinton administration and was chairman of the National Economic Council during the Obama administration.

Summers recently led heated debates on U.S. monetary policy. In June 2021, he warned that the Federal Reserve's (Fed) judgment that inflation was transitory was wrong, strongly criticizing the Fed's expansionary monetary policy at the time. Following his warning, an international inflation surge occurred, leading to a 'cost of living crisis.' Both the Fed and investors pay close attention to every word he says.

Some view his appointment as a director of the tech company OpenAI as somewhat unusual. However, according to foreign media reports, Summers has shown a strong interest in IT and future technologies for a long time.

Lee Chang-yong, Governor of the Bank of Korea, is also one of Summers' disciples.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

He has shown particular interest in OpenAI's generative AI chatbot service, ChatGPT. In April, he expressed his expectations on his X (formerly Twitter) account, stating, "ChatGPT is becoming increasingly powerful and could significantly change the way doctors, bankers, and writers work."

In the U.S., there is an interpretation that OpenAI's recruitment of him is a strategic move to preempt future AI-related regulatory issues. WSJ evaluated Summers, who has extensive connections in U.S. political and business circles, as "the right person to lead OpenAI's reorganization."

Meanwhile, having held the most respected positions in American society?from Harvard University president to top government official?the only position Summers has yet to hold is none other than the chairmanship of the Fed.

During the Obama administration in 2014, former President Barack Obama reportedly seriously considered him as a leading candidate for Fed chair. According to a report by the New York Times (NYT) at the time, Summers also had considerable ambition for the Fed chair position. However, the chairmanship ultimately went to Janet Yellen, the current Treasury Secretary.