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Former US treasury secretary Lawrence Summers is exiting the directorate at the ChatGPT creator, just several days after a batch of emails between him and late convicted sex offender the accused trafficker became widely known.

The economist remarked in a release that he was "grateful for the opportunity to have served, excited about the potential of the organization, and eagerly await observing their advancement".

The prominent academic, who previously headed the Ivy League institution, announced on Monday that he would be stepping back from public roles due to his association with Epstein.

Digital Correspondence

The newly public messages revealed that Summers exchanged messages with Jeffrey Epstein until the eve of Epstein's 2019 arrest for alleged sex trafficking of young people.

In another announcement, the AI firm said it respected Summers' determination to step down.

"We value his many contributions and the insight he offered to the governing body," OpenAI commented.

Congressional Action

This announcement comes after the two houses of Congress agreed on this week to pass a legislation that would compel the US justice department to release its documents on the case.

The measure will afterward move to the office of US President Donald Trump for approval. Trump has stated he plans to approve the legislation, after reversing his stance on the subject following pressure from his followers.

Correspondence Findings

A group of Epstein-related emails released by the legislative panel days ago included numerous prominent individuals in the billionaire's former circle, without indicating any criminal activity by those people.

The emails indicated that the professor and Epstein dined together frequently, with the billionaire often attempting to connect the official to influential international personalities.

Individual Statement

After the messages were released with the general audience, Summers stated he took "full responsibility for my ill-advised choice to maintain communicating with Mr Epstein".

He further stated that he desired "to rebuild confidence and repair relationships with the persons nearest to me".

Professional History

Summers held senior posts under party leaders; acting as economic leader under Bill Clinton, and as head of the National Economic Council under President Obama.

He headed the university from 2001 to 2006 and remains a professor there. When stating his departure from public commitments previously on this week, he stated he would continue his educational duties.

Additional Consequences

Following his declaration on Monday, the policy organization, a left-leaning research organization in Washington where the professor was a researcher, verified that Summers was not associated with the organization.

Summers entered the leadership of OpenAI, which creates the language model, in the previous year - following a unsuccessful effort to replace its CEO OpenAI's head.