Market Updates

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was fired, and then rehired five days later. After a conflict with some members of the board, he was shockingly fired from the leading AI company in the world, throwing the company and industry into disarray. The conflict was apparently based in part with the board’s differing viewpoint on how safely to grow the company and how far to stray from its non-profit roots. Other leading members of the company resigned and an overwhelming majority of its employees threatened to follow if the board didn’t reinstate him. However, Altman then agreed, along with co-founder Greg Brockman, to join Microsoft, who has already invested $13 billion into OpenAI. Finally, after changes to the board, both Altman and Brockman agreed to return to OpenAI, presumably in a stronger position than before. This entire drama underscores that even leading startups in cutting-edge areas carry with them outsized risks of all stripes and the future of AI safety will remain a hot-button topic as the industry grows.

Crypto exchange Binance was hit with a record $4.3 billion fine and its CEO CZ Zhao stepped down. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange agreed to the largest penalty in U.S. history while Zhao pleaded guilty to a money laundering violation. He stepped down from his post, will pay a $50 million fine and is barred from ever been involved again with Binance. He remains free on a $175 million bond until his sentencing next February where he is expected to face up to 18 months in prison. Despite this news, the price of Bitcoin was unaffected, though the price of Binance coin, the exchange’s native currency, fell 4% in the aftermath.

A new record for any bottle of wine or spirit sold at auction was set. A 60-year old Macallan scotch whiskey sold for over $2.7 million, almost twice as much as the pre-sale high estimate of $1.4 million. Originally bottled in 1986 after being aged since 1926, only 40 bottles of the Macallan 60 Year Old were ever produced, one of which had set the old record of $1.9 million in 2019. Additionally, this is one of just 12 with a label designed by Italian artist Valerio Adami, of which only 10 still exist, further increasing its value.

Total existing-home sales dropped 4.1% monthly and 14.6% year over year in October. The report from National Association of Realtors showed the lowest level of sales in 13 years, with decreases most pronounced in the Northeast and the South. The report did find that total inventory rose by 1.8% in October, which coupled with slightly lower mortgage rates could lead to a bump in sales this month. Indeed, a Redfin report showed that pending home sales (where a house is under contract) rose 1% in October, adjusted for season, though buyers backed out of deals at the highest rate on record.