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Former US treasury secretary Larry Summers is exiting the board at the artificial intelligence firm, just a week after a batch of digital correspondence between him and deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein became public.

Summers commented in a statement that he was "appreciative for the opportunity to have served, enthusiastic about the promise of the company, and eagerly await observing their advancement".

The prominent academic, who once presided over the Ivy League institution, stated on earlier this week that he would be scaling back from public roles due to his association with the convicted sex offender.

Digital Correspondence

The recently released communications demonstrated that the economist exchanged messages with Jeffrey Epstein until the eve of Epstein's 2019 arrest for suspected trafficking of minors.

In another announcement, the technology organization said it understood Summers' choice to depart.

"We appreciate his many contributions and the viewpoint he offered to the Board," the organization remarked.

Political Context

This announcement follows after both chambers of Congress agreed on recently to pass a measure that would mandate the Department of Justice to make public its records on the case.

The legislation will then head to the desk of the White House for endorsement. He has stated he plans to sign the legislation, after reversing his stance on the issue following pushback from his supporters.

Correspondence Findings

A group of financier-linked emails disclosed by the Congressional committee last week mentioned numerous high-profile figures in the billionaire's former circle, without suggesting any illegal behavior by those individuals.

The communications revealed that the economist and Epstein dined together frequently, with he often seeking to introduce the academic to notable global figures.

Individual Statement

After the emails were shared with the general audience, he stated he accepted "complete accountability for my poor choice to continue corresponding with the financier".

He continued that he desired "to rebuild confidence and fix relationships with the people nearest to me".

Career Background

The economist served in leadership roles under two Democratic presidents; functioning as economic leader under the former president, and as director of the National Economic Council under President Obama.

He presided over the institution from 2001 to 2006 and remains a academic there. When declaring his withdrawal from public commitments earlier on Monday, he said he would continue his academic responsibilities.

Additional Consequences

Following the economist's statement on Monday, the Center for American Progress, a liberal policy institute in DC where he was a researcher, verified that Summers was ceased to be associated with the institution.

The former official entered the directorate of the AI company, which creates the AI chatbot, in last year - following a failed attempt to oust its top executive OpenAI's head.