TECH entrepreneur Sam Altman has been the CEO of OpenAI since May 2019.
In May 2023, the 38-year-old stood before the Senate to urge lawmakers to regulate AI inventions including the chatbot tool, ChatGPT.
Who is Sam Altman?
Sam Altman was born on April 22, 1985, in Chicago, Illinois.
After growing up in St. Louis, Missouri, the young technology enthusiast went on to study computer science at Stanford University. However, in 2005, he left college without earning his Bachelor's degree to work on the mobile app, Loopt.
Altman came out to his parents when he was 16. "Growing up gay in the Midwest in the two-thousands was not the most awesome thing," he told The New Yorker.
Are there illegal baby names? Surprising monikers that are BANNED in other countries, from Sarah to Thomas
"And finding AOL chat rooms was transformative. Secrets are bad when you're eleven or twelve."
The vegetarian used was previously linked to Loopt co-founder, Nick Sivo, for nine years, before calling it quits in 2012.
Altman is also a lover of racing cars. He told The New Yorker in a 2016 interview: “I have five, including two McLarens and an old Tesla. I like flying rented planes all over California."
He has two brothers, Jack and Max.
When did Sam Altman cofound OpenAI?
In 2015, Altman cofounded OpenAI with Elon Musk.
"We discussed what is the best thing we can do to ensure the future is good?" Musk told The New York Times at the time.
"We could sit on the sidelines or we can encourage regulatory oversight, or we could participate with the right structure with people who care deeply about developing A.I. in a way that is safe and is beneficial to humanity."
In May 2019, Altman became the CEO of OpenAI - the company behind generative AI tools like DALL-E and ChatGPT.
Over the years, he has transitioned his focus onto OpenAI, and on May 16, 2023, he took a trip to Washington, DC, to testify before Congress on the risks of AI.
“We think that regulatory intervention by governments will be critical to mitigate the risks of increasingly powerful models,” Altman said in his opening remarks before a Senate Judiciary subcommittee.
All about Rachel Nickell who was murdered in front of her son Alex Hanscombe
His remarks come a month after he told ABC News in an interview that he thinks "people should be happy that we're a little bit scared" of generative AI systems as they develop.
On November 17, 2023, it was announced that Sam Altman had departed OpenAI. The company's Chief technology officer, Mira Murati, was appointed interim CEO.
However, just days after the announcement, it was revealed on November 22 that Altman would, in fact, return as chief executive.
"We have reached an agreement in principle for Sam Altman to return to OpenAI as CEO with a new initial board of Bret Taylor (Chair), Larry Summers, and Adam D'Angelo," OpenAI wrote on X. "We are collaborating to figure out the details. Thank you so much for your patience through this."
What is Sam Altman's net worth?
Sam Altman is an American entrepreneur, investor, and programmer.
He was the CEO of OpenAI - the company behind the controversial chatbot, ChatGPT.
Previously, Altman has held the following titles:
- Co-founder of Loopt (2005 - 2012)
- President of Y Combinator (2011 - 2019)
- CEO of Reddit (briefly for eight days in 2014)
Altman's net worth - which derives from his work with AI - is estimated to be $500million, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
He was featured on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list for venture capital at age 29, back in 2015.
