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Former US treasury secretary Lawrence Summers is departing from the directorate at the artificial intelligence firm, just a week after a batch of electronic messages between him and late convicted sex offender the disgraced billionaire became publicly available.

He stated in a release that he was "thankful for the privilege to have contributed, enthusiastic about the prospects of the company, and look forward tracking their advancement".

The former Harvard president, who previously presided over the prestigious university, stated on Monday that he would be scaling back from public responsibilities due to his association with Epstein.

Digital Correspondence

The freshly disclosed messages revealed that the official exchanged messages with the financier until the eve of the financier's 2019 detention for suspected sex trafficking of underage individuals.

In another announcement, the AI firm said it respected the economist's choice to depart.

"We value his significant contributions and the insight he offered to the directors," OpenAI remarked.

Congressional Action

This news comes after both chambers of the US legislature voted on recently to approve a legislation that would mandate the federal prosecutors to release its documents on the case.

The measure will afterward head to the desk of President Trump for signature. The President has indicated he intends to sign the measure, after changing his position on the subject following pressure from his base.

Correspondence Findings

A collection of Epstein-related correspondence made public by the House Oversight Committee last week included several prominent individuals in the Epstein's former circle, without implying any illegal behavior by those people.

The emails indicated that Summers and the financier regularly had dinners together, with the billionaire often trying to connect the official to prominent international personalities.

Personal Accountability

After the messages were made available with the general audience, Summers said he accepted "total ownership for my ill-advised choice to maintain corresponding with the financier".

He continued that he hoped "to reestablish trust and fix relationships with the individuals most important to me".

Career Background

Summers served in senior posts under two Democratic presidents; acting as economic leader under the former president, and as director of the economic advisory body under the former leader.

He presided over the institution from 2001 to 2006 and continues to be a academic there. When declaring his withdrawal from public duties recently on Monday, he said he would continue his academic responsibilities.

Other Impacts

Following Summers' declaration on earlier this week, the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning research organization in Washington where Summers was a researcher, confirmed that the economist was not connected with the institution.

The former official entered the leadership of OpenAI, which makes the AI chatbot, in 2023 - following a unsuccessful effort to oust its CEO Sam Altman.