Reuters reported, citing two people familiar with the matter, that ahead of Altman's ouster several OpenAI researchers had sent the board a letter warning of a powerful AI discovery they said could threaten humanity. An internal project called Q* (Q-star) had reportedly become able to solve grade-school math problems, which some inside saw as a breakthrough toward AGI. Never verified, the report fueled worldwide speculation about progress toward AGI, and Q* became an enduring symbol of the saga.