Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers has resigned from the board of artificial intelligence giant OpenAI, days after Congress released a trove of documents detailing his extensive and controversial communications with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The revelations have also prompted Harvard University, where Summers is a professor and former president, to launch its own investigation into his connections with Epstein.
Summers' departure from OpenAI's board follows a bipartisan vote in both the House and Senate to release the long-awaited Epstein files. Over the past few days, a House panel specifically made public years of email exchanges between Epstein and Summers, shedding light on a relationship that has drawn significant scrutiny.
Among the most troubling revelations are emails from late 2018 to mid-2019, in which Summers, who was married at the time, sought Epstein's advice about pursuing a relationship with a woman he described as a mentee. The correspondence suggests Summers acknowledged a power imbalance, writing in a March 2019 email to Epstein:
“She must be very confused or maybe wants to cut me off but wants professional connection a lot and so holds to it.”
Epstein, who early in their exchanges referred to himself as Summers' “wing man,” responded in a June 2019 text with the message: “She is doomed to be with you.” Further messages show Summers speculating that his “best shot” at a sexual relationship with his mentee was if she found him “invaluable and interesting” and believed “she can’t have it without romance/sex.” Throughout June, Epstein consistently urged Summers to play the “long game” and keep the woman in a “forced holding pattern.”
The fallout extends beyond OpenAI. The Harvard Crimson, the university's student newspaper, reported that Harvard University will initiate an internal probe into Summers' ties with Epstein. Additionally, Summers is expected to step back from his public commitments in light of the disclosures.
Jeffrey Epstein was arrested in July 2019 on charges of sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors.
