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Former US treasury secretary Lawrence Summers is departing from the board at the artificial intelligence firm, just several days after a batch of emails between him and deceased financier the accused trafficker became widely known.

He stated in an announcement that he was "grateful for the privilege to have contributed, enthusiastic about the potential of the company, and anticipate tracking their progress".

The former Harvard president, who once presided over the prestigious university, announced on recently that he would be withdrawing from public responsibilities due to his connections with Jeffrey Epstein.

Digital Correspondence

The recently released emails showed that the economist communicated with Epstein until the day before the financier's 2019 arrest for accused human trafficking of underage individuals.

In another announcement, the artificial intelligence company said it understood the economist's determination to depart.

"We appreciate his many contributions and the perspective he brought to the Board," the company commented.

Congressional Action

This development follows after the two houses of Congress decided on Tuesday to endorse a legislation that would compel the Department of Justice to disclose its records on the case.

The legislation will then proceed to the desk of the White House for endorsement. He has indicated he expects to approve the legislation, after reversing his position on the issue following pushback from his base.

Email Contents

A group of Epstein-connected emails made public by the House Oversight Committee days ago included several prominent individuals in the billionaire's past associates, without suggesting any criminal activity by those people.

The communications revealed that the economist and Jeffrey Epstein regularly had dinners together, with Epstein often seeking to connect Summers to notable global figures.

Individual Statement

After the messages were made available with the public, the former official stated he assumed "total ownership for my ill-advised judgment to continue interacting with Jeffrey Epstein".

He continued that he hoped "to restore confidence and mend relationships with the persons most important to me".

Professional History

Summers occupied senior posts under two Democratic presidents; functioning as economic leader under Bill Clinton, and as leader of the National Economic Council under Barack Obama.

He headed Harvard from 2001 to 2006 and remains a faculty member there. When announcing his departure from public commitments recently on this week, he indicated he would persist with his academic responsibilities.

Additional Consequences

Following his declaration on Monday, the Center for American Progress, a liberal policy institute in the capital where he was a researcher, announced that he was not affiliated with the organization.

He joined the leadership of the technology firm, which creates the language model, in last year - following a unsuccessful effort to oust its chief executive Sam Altman.