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Former US treasury secretary Lawrence Summers is leaving the board at OpenAI, just days after a batch of digital correspondence between him and late convicted sex offender the accused trafficker became widely known.

Summers stated in a statement that he was "grateful for the opportunity to have participated, optimistic about the potential of the enterprise, and eagerly await tracking their progress".

Summers, who formerly presided over the prestigious university, announced on earlier this week that he would be stepping back from public responsibilities due to his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.

Message Exchange

The newly public emails showed that Summers corresponded with the financier until the day before Epstein's 2019 apprehension for suspected trafficking of young people.

In additional comments, the technology organization expressed it accepted Summers' choice to depart.

"We value his many contributions and the insight he provided to the Board," OpenAI commented.

Congressional Action

This news comes after both chambers of the US legislature decided on this week to endorse a legislation that would require the Department of Justice to disclose its records on the case.

The measure will afterward head to the desk of President Trump for endorsement. The President has said he intends to endorse the bill, after reversing his position on the subject following pressure from his base.

Correspondence Findings

A group of Epstein-connected correspondence made public by the House Oversight Committee last week referenced multiple prominent individuals in the financier's previous network, without suggesting any legal wrongdoing by those people.

The messages indicated that Summers and Jeffrey Epstein often met for meals, with he often seeking to link the official to prominent international personalities.

Individual Statement

After the emails were shared with the wider community, Summers said he assumed "complete accountability for my ill-advised decision to maintain interacting with Mr Epstein".

He continued that he desired "to rebuild confidence and repair relationships with the persons most important to me".

Career Background

The professor served in leadership roles under two Democratic presidents; serving as Treasury chief under Bill Clinton, and as leader of the National Economic Council under the former leader.

He led the university from five years and continues to be a professor there. When declaring his departure from public commitments earlier on Monday, he stated he would maintain his educational duties.

Additional Consequences

Following the economist's statement on earlier this week, the Center for American Progress, a progressive policy institute in the capital where the professor was a senior fellow, verified that Summers was no longer connected with the group.

He became part of the board of OpenAI, which creates the language model, in the previous year - following a failed attempt to replace its chief executive Sam Altman.