— Seattle area tech executive David Azose is now chief technology officer for San Francisco’s Airtable. Azose joins the database and workflow automation company from OpenAI, where he was head of engineering for ChatGPT’s business products.
Azose began his career at Microsoft, departing the tech giant in 2017 after more than nine years to take the role of director of engineering at Uber’s Seattle office. Azose then worked at DoorDash before going to OpenAI last year.
“Airtable helped democratize no-code long before it was fashionable. With the advent of AI, the opportunity to amplify that mission feels inevitable and energizing, and I can’t wait for what’s ahead,” Azose said on LinkedIn.
— Microsoft hired former United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as a part-time advisor. He holds similar titles at Anthropic and Goldman Sachs.
In his Microsoft role, Sunak will provide “high-level strategic perspectives on macro-economic and geopolitical trends and how they intersect with technology and society,” according to information he submitted to the UK’s Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (ACoBA).
While Sunak said he will “not be advising on any UK policy matters,” a report from ACoBA noted, “As the former Prime Minister there is a reasonable concern that you could be seen to offer unfair access to, and influence in, the UK government. This risk is heightened given the ongoing debate and lobbying efforts by large tech companies, including Microsoft, on the approach to best regulate AI.”
Sunak’s obligations include speaking at Microsoft’s annual summit.
Sunak served as prime minister for nearly two years, ending in July 2024. He remains a member of Britain’s parliament. Sunak is donating his Microsoft salary to The Richmond Project, a charity that helps children and adults with math skills that he launched with his wife Akshata Murty.
— Jonathan Rosenbluth joined Seattle AI startup Oumi as the head of product and go-to-market. He comes to the role from the Toronto-based AI model and foundation-building company Cohere.
Oumi, which aims to open the “black box” of foundational AI models to spur innovation, came out of stealth in January and has raised $10 million from investors.
“The team is world-class, led by Emmanouil (Manos) Koukoumidis and Oussama Elachqar, with deep technical chops and serious ambition,” Rosenbluth said on LinkedIn. “I feel lucky to be building with them.”
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