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Former US treasury secretary the Harvard professor is departing from the board at OpenAI, just days after a batch of emails between him and deceased financier the disgraced billionaire became widely known.

Summers stated in an announcement that he was "appreciative for the chance to have participated, enthusiastic about the prospects of the enterprise, and eagerly await following their progress".

The prominent academic, who previously headed the prestigious university, announced on Monday that he would be withdrawing from public roles due to his association with the convicted sex offender.

Digital Correspondence

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

In a separate statement, the technology organization expressed it respected Summers' determination to depart.

"We acknowledge his many contributions and the insight he offered to the Board," OpenAI remarked.

Political Context

This announcement follows after the two houses of the US legislature decided on recently to pass a bill that would compel the Department of Justice to release its documents on Jeffrey Epstein.

The bill will then proceed to the desk of President Trump for endorsement. The President has indicated he intends to sign the bill, after reversing his stance on the matter following objections from his base.

Correspondence Findings

A group of Epstein-related messages made public by the Congressional committee last week mentioned multiple high-profile figures in the financier's previous network, without implying any legal wrongdoing by those people.

The communications indicated that the professor and the financier regularly had dinners together, with the billionaire often trying to introduce Summers to notable world leaders.

Personal Response

After the correspondence were released with the general audience, the former official expressed he accepted "complete accountability for my misguided judgment to maintain communicating with Jeffrey Epstein".

He continued that he wanted "to restore confidence and mend relationships with the individuals nearest to me".

Previous Positions

The economist occupied senior posts under party leaders; functioning as Treasury chief under President Clinton, and as head of the White House economic team under President Obama.

He led the university from five years and continues to be a professor there. When announcing his withdrawal from public roles earlier on this week, he stated he would persist with his teaching commitments.

Other Impacts

Following his declaration on earlier this week, the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank in the capital where the professor was a prominent member, announced that he was not associated with the group.

The former official entered the board of the AI company, which creates ChatGPT, in the previous year - following a unsuccessful effort to oust its chief executive OpenAI's head.