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Former US treasury secretary the Harvard professor is exiting the governing body at the ChatGPT creator, just several days after a collection of digital correspondence between him and deceased financier the disgraced billionaire became widely known.

The economist commented in an announcement that he was "grateful for the chance to have served, enthusiastic about the prospects of the enterprise, and eagerly await observing their progress".

Summers, who previously led the prestigious university, declared on earlier this week that he would be scaling back from public roles due to his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.

Message Exchange

The recently released emails revealed that Summers corresponded with Jeffrey Epstein until the eve of his 2019 detention for suspected sex trafficking of minors.

In a separate statement, the AI firm said it understood Summers' choice to resign.

"We appreciate his many contributions and the insight he offered to the Board," the company commented.

Congressional Action

This announcement arrives after both chambers of the legislative branch voted on this week to pass a measure that would require the US justice department to disclose its files on Epstein.

The measure will subsequently head to the administration of President Trump for endorsement. The President has indicated he plans to approve the bill, after changing his position on the subject following pushback from his followers.

Email Contents

A collection of Epstein-related emails released by the Congressional committee days ago included several high-profile figures in the financier's previous network, without suggesting any illegal behavior by those individuals.

The communications revealed that the economist and the financier dined together frequently, with he often trying to introduce the official to prominent international personalities.

Individual Statement

After the messages were released with the general audience, the former official said he took "complete accountability for my poor decision to persist in corresponding with Mr Epstein".

He added that he wanted "to restore faith and mend relationships with the people most important to me".

Career Background

The economist occupied senior posts under two Democratic presidents; serving as economic leader under Bill Clinton, and as leader of the White House economic team under the former leader.

He headed the institution from the early 2000s and remains a faculty member there. When announcing his step-down from public roles previously on this week, he indicated he would persist with his teaching commitments.

Further Repercussions

Following the economist's declaration on Monday, the Center for American Progress, a progressive think tank in the capital where he was a senior fellow, confirmed that Summers was ceased to be associated with the group.

Summers became part of the board of the AI company, which develops the AI chatbot, in 2023 - following a defeated move to oust its top executive OpenAI's head.