View source for Sam Altman

{{Use American English|date=January 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2025}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Sam Altman
| image              = Sam Altman TechCrunch SF 2019 Day 2 Oct 3 (cropped 3).jpg
| caption            = Altman in 2019
| birth_name         = Samuel Harris Altman
| birth_date         = {{Birth date and age|1985|04|22}}
| birth_place        = [[Chicago]], Illinois, U.S.
| education          = [[Stanford University]] (dropped out)
| occupation         = 
| known_for          = 
| notable_works      = [[Loopt]]&nbsp;(co-founder)
| title              = {{bulletedlist
| CEO of [[OpenAI]]
| Chairman of [[Helion Energy]]
| President of [[Y Combinator]] (until 2019)}}
| spouse             = {{marriage|Oliver Mulherin|2024}}
| children           = 1
| website            = {{URL|https://blog.samaltman.com/}}
| signature          = Sam altman autograph 2024.svg
}}
'''Samuel Harris Altman''' (born April 22, 1985)<ref>Hao, Karen. "Empire of AI". [[Penguin Press]].</ref> is an American businessman and entrepreneur who has been the [[chief executive officer]] (CEO) of the artificial intelligence research organization [[OpenAI]] since 2019.<ref name="openailp">[https://openai.com/blog/openai-lp/ "OpenAI LP"]. ''openai.com''.</ref>

Altman attended [[Stanford University]] for two years before dropping out and co-founding [[Loopt]], a smartphone [[geosocial networking]] service, which raised more than {{Currency|30 million|USD|linked=no|passthrough=yes}} in [[venture capital]] before being acquired by [[Green Dot Corporation]] for $43.4 million in cash.<ref name=":4" /> In 2011, Altman joined [[Y Combinator]], a technology [[startup accelerator]] and venture capital firm, and was the company's president from 2014 to 2019.<ref name="wapo-2023">[https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/11/22/sam-altman-fired-y-combinator-paul-graham/ "Sam Altman Fired from Y Combinator by Paul Graham"]. ''[[The Washington Post]]''.</ref> 

After co-founding OpenAI in 2015, Altman later became the organization's CEO in 2019.<ref>Peluso, Olivia. [https://observer.com/2025/04/sam-altman-40-birthday-openai-ceo/ "Sam Altman Turns 40: A Look Back at the OpenAI CEO’s Unlikely Ascent"]. ''Observer''. April 22, 2025.</ref> In 2023, [[Removal of Sam Altman from OpenAI|he was ousted]] by the organization's board of directors, who cited a lack of "confidence in his ability to continue leading OpenAI" in an official post. However, the move was met with significant backlash from employees and investors, resulting in Altman's reinstatement five days later and the formation of a new board.<ref name=":3" /> 

Having overseen the launch of [[ChatGPT]] in November 2022, he has been described as one of the leading figures of the [[AI boom]].<ref name="Intelligencer">Weil, Elizabeth. [https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/sam-altman-artificial-intelligence-openai-profile.html "Sam Altman Is the Oppenheimer of Our Age."]. ''Intelligencer''. September 25, 2023.</ref><ref name=":3">Mickle, Tripp. [https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/09/technology/openai-altman-inside-crisis.html "Inside OpenAI's Crisis Over the Future of Artificial Intelligence"]. ''The New York Times''. December 9, 2023.</ref><ref>[https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/artificial-the-openai-story-21587cbd "Artificial: The OpenAI Story"]. ''Wall Street Journal''. December 10, 2023.</ref> In 2025, Altman was named among the "Architects of AI" for ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]''{{'s}} [[Time Person of the Year|Person of the Year]]. His net worth was estimated at {{US$|3.3 billion}} by ''[[Forbes]]'' in March 2026.<ref>[https://www.forbes.com/profile/sam-altman/ "Sam Altman"]. ''Forbes''.</ref> 

== Early life and education ==
Altman was born in [[Chicago]], Illinois, on April 22, 1985, to a Jewish American family. His mother Connie Gibstine is a dermatologist and his father Jerry Altman was a real estate broker.{{sfn|Hagey|2025|pp=22-23, 30-31, 33, 36}}<ref name="Chapman Bachner Magid Ben-David 2023 b104">Citation needed.</ref> Altman is the eldest of four siblings: he has two brothers, Max and Jack; and a sister, Ann.<ref name="Intelligencer" /> His paternal great-grandfather was born in [[Płock]], [[History of the Jews in Poland|Poland]].{{sfn|Hagey|2025|p=23}}  In 1989, the Altman family moved to Jerry's hometown of [[Clayton, Missouri]].{{sfn|Hagey|2025|pp=38-39}}

At the age of eight, Altman received his first computer—an [[Mac (computer)#1991–1998: PowerPC transition and sales decline|Apple Macintosh]]—and began to learn how to [[Computer programming|code]] and disassemble and examine [[computer hardware]].<ref name="esquire.com">Junod, Tom. [https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/interviews/a30763/sam-altman-interview-2014/ "How Venture Capitalists Find Opportunities in the Future"]. ''[[Esquire (magazine)''. December 18, 2014.</ref><ref>Afifi-Sabet, Keumars. [https://theweek.com/news/technology/961823/sam-altman-profile-openai-ceo-leading-ai-revolution "Sam Altman: the OpenAI CEO leading the AI revolution"]. The Week.</ref> He attended [[John Burroughs School]], a private institution in [[Ladue, Missouri]].<ref>Nguyen, Britney. [https://www.businessinsider.com/sam-altman-chatgpt-openai-ceo-career-net-worth-ycombinator-prepper-2023-1 "Meet Sam Altman, the OpenAI CEO who learned to code at 8 and is a doomsday prepper with a stash of guns and gold"]. February 20, 2024.</ref> In 2005, after studying computer science for two years at [[Stanford University]] in [[Stanford, California]], he dropped out without earning a bachelor's degree.<ref>Hagy, Paige. [https://fortune.com/2023/11/21/who-is-sam-altman-openai-career-microsoft-background-y-combinator-loopt-stanford/ "Sam Altman's ousting from OpenAI could lead to even greater success: 'You could parachute him into an island full of cannibals and come back in five years and he'd be the king'"]. ''Fortune''. November 21, 2023.</ref><ref>[http://ycombinator.com/people.html "People"]. ''[[Y Combinator (company)''.</ref>

== Business career ==

=== Early career ===

In 2005, at the age of 19,<ref>Ankeny, Jason. [http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/244508 "Meet Y Combinator's Bold Whiz Kid Boss"]. ''[[Entrepreneur (magazine)''. April 25, 2015.</ref> Altman co-founded [[Loopt]],<ref>[http://www.loopt.com/about/company/executives "Executives"]. ''[[Loopt]]''.</ref> a location-based [[social networking service|social networking]] mobile application. As CEO, he raised more than $30 million in [[venture capital]] for the company, including an initial investment of $5 million from Patrick Chung of [[Xfund]] and his team at [[New Enterprise Associates]], followed by investments from [[Sequoia Capital]] and Y Combinator.<ref name="f2" /> In March 2012, after Loopt failed to gain significant user traction, the company was acquired by the [[Green Dot Corporation]] for $43.4 million.<ref name=":4">Vascellaro, Jessica E.. [https://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2012/03/09/startup-loopt-lands-with-green-dot/ "Startup Loopt Lands with Green Dot"]. ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]''. March 9, 2012.</ref>

=== Y Combinator ===
In 2011, Altman became a partner at startup accelerator [[Y Combinator]] (YC), initially working on a part-time basis.<ref name=":0">Clark, Kate. [https://techcrunch.com/2019/03/08/y-combinator-president-sam-altman-is-stepping-down-amid-a-series-of-changes-at-the-accelerator/ "Y Combinator president Sam Altman is stepping down amid a series of changes at the accelerator"]. ''[[TechCrunch]]''. March 8, 2019.</ref> In February 2014, he became president of YC.<ref>Loizos, Connie. [https://techcrunch.com/2015/11/06/garry-tan-says-goodbye-to-y-combinator/ "Garry Tan Says Goodbye to Y Combinator"]. ''[[TechCrunch]]''. November 6, 2015.</ref> He aimed to expand YC to fund 1,000 new companies per year and sought to broaden the types of companies funded, particularly focusing on "hard technology" startups.<ref>Chafkin, Max. [http://www.fastcompany.com/3044282/the-y-combinator-chronicles/california-dreamin "Y Combinator President Sam Altman is Dreaming Big"]. ''[[Fast Company]]''. April 16, 2015.</ref> In October 2015, Altman was involved in expanding YC's scope. He contributed $10 million to the initial fund of Y Combinator Research, and announced YC Continuity, a fund to invest in maturing YC companies.<ref>"YC Research". October 7, 2015.</ref><ref>[http://blog.ycombinator.com/yc-continuity-fund "YC Continuity"]. Y Combinator. October 15, 2015.</ref><ref>[https://venturebeat.com/2015/10/15/y-combinator-raises-700m-to-keep-funding-yc-startups-as-they-mature/ "Y Combinator raises $700M to keep funding YC startups as they mature"]. ''VentureBeat''. October 15, 2015.</ref> In September 2016, Altman's role at YC expanded to president of YC Group, which included Y Combinator and other units.<ref>Altman, Sam. [https://blog.ycombinator.com/yc-changes "YC Changes"]. ''[[Y Combinator]]''. September 13, 2016.</ref>

YC moved its headquarters to [[San Francisco]] in 2019.<ref name=":0" /> In March, Altman and YC began to falsely<ref name="f1"/><ref name="f2"/> claim that Altman had transitioned from president to a less hands-on role as [[chairman of the board]], allowing him to focus on OpenAI.<ref>Loizos, Connie. [https://techcrunch.com/2019/03/09/did-sam-altman-make-yc-better-or-worse/ "Did Sam Altman make YC better or worse?"]. ''[[TechCrunch]]''. March 9, 2019.</ref><ref name="blog.yc">[https://blog.ycombinator.com/updates-from-yc/ "Updates from YC"].</ref> However, Y Combinator partners never approved his appointment.<ref name="f1">Bloomberg, Sara. [https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/inno/stories/news/2024/04/15/sam-altman-y-combinator-board-chair.html "Sam Altman is not on YC's board. So why claim to be its chair?"]. ''Biz Journals''. April 15, 2024.</ref><ref name="f2">Seetharaman, Deepa. [https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/sam-altman-openai-protected-by-silicon-valley-friends-f3efcf68 "Sam Altman's Knack for Dodging Bullets—With a Little Help From Bigshot Friends"]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. December 24, 2023.</ref> In early 2020, Altman and YC terminated their relationship.<ref name="wapo-2020">McGregor, Jena. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/02/21/sam-altman-steps-down-y-combinator/ "Y Combinator president Sam Altman steps down to focus on OpenAI"]. ''The Washington Post {{dead link''. February 21, 2020.</ref>

=== Investor ===
[[File:Human connection is still important to people Sam Altman.webm|thumb|Altman at the 2024 [[World Economic Forum]] ]]
As of June 2024, Altman's investment portfolio includes stakes in over 400 companies, valued at around $2.8 billion. Some of these investments intersect with companies doing business with OpenAI, which has raised questions about potential conflicts of interest. OpenAI's chairman of the board, [[Bret Taylor]], maintained that Altman has been transparent about his investments.<ref>Hagey, Berber Jin, Tom Dotan and Keach. [https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/openai-sam-altman-investments-004fc785 "The Opaque Investment Empire Making OpenAI's Sam Altman Rich"]. ''WSJ''. June 3, 2024.</ref>

In April 2012, Altman co-founded [[Hydrazine Capital]] with his brother, Jack Altman.<ref>Hydrazine Capital GP, LLC. [https://reports.adviserinfo.sec.gov/reports/ADV/165781/PDF/165781.pdf "Form ADV - Uniform Application for Investment Adviser Registration and Report by Exempt Reporting Advisers."]. ''[[Securities and Exchange Commission]]''. February 14, 2023.</ref><ref>[https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/1003986D:US "Hydrazine Capital LP - Company Profile and News"]. ''[[Bloomberg L.P.]]''.</ref>  The initial $21 million fund included a large part of the $5 million he got from selling Loopt, but most came from [[Peter Thiel]], his mentor and main backer in [[Silicon Valley]]. Sam Altman invested 75 percent of the money in Y-Combinator companies.<ref>Dwoskin, Elizabeth. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/12/23/sam-altman-openai-peter-thiel-silicon-valley/ "'King of the cannibals': How Sam Altman took over Silicon Valley"]. ''The Washington Post''. 23 December 2023.</ref><ref>Nguyen, Britney. [https://www.businessinsider.com/sam-altman-chatgpt-openai-ceo-career-net-worth-ycombinator-prepper-2023-1#after-loopt-altman-founded-a-venture-fund-called-hydrazine-capital-and-raised-21-million-5 "The rise of OpenAI's billionaire CEO, Sam Altman"]. ''Business Insider''. 23 May 2025.</ref> In 2023, when Hydrazine launched its fourth fund, the [[University of Michigan]] [[university endowment|endowment]] was the only outside investor. Its investments in Hydrazine were the largest the endowment has made.<ref>Matthews, Jessica. [https://fortune.com/2023/12/20/university-of-michigan-wrote-sam-altman-venture-capital-firm-75-million-check/ "The University of Michigan wrote Sam Altman's venture capital firm a $75M check earlier this year for a new fund"]. Fortune.</ref> Altman debuted on the ''[[Bloomberg Billionaires Index]]'' in March 2024 with an estimated net worth of $2 billion, primarily from his venture capital funds related to Hydrazine Capital.<ref>Massa, Annie. [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-01/sam-altman-is-a-billionaire-thanks-to-vc-funds-startups "Sam Altman Is Worth $2 Billion—That Doesn't Include OpenAI"]. Bloomberg News. March 1, 2024.</ref>
[[File:Nancy Pelosi GLAAD 2017 2 (cropped).jpg|thumb|[[Nancy Pelosi]] presenting Altman with the Ric Weiland Award in 2017]]
Altman was invited to attend the [[Bilderberg Meeting]] in 2016,<ref>[https://time.com/4362872/bilderberg-group-meetings-2016-conspiracy-theories/ "The World's Most Powerful and Secret Group, Explained"]. ''Time''. June 9, 2016.</ref> [[2022 Bilderberg Conference|2022]],<ref>[https://www.bilderbergmeetings.org/meetings/meeting-2022/participants-2022 "Participants 2022"]. ''www.bilderbergmeetings.org''.</ref> and [[2023 Bilderberg Conference|2023]].<ref>Gilchrist, Karen. [https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/18/bilderberg-openai-microsoft-google-join-ai-talks-at-secretive-meeting.html "A secretive annual meeting attended by the world's elite has A.I. top of the agenda"]. ''CNBC''. May 18, 2023.</ref><ref>Skelton, Charlie. [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/20/bilderberg-meeting-group-lisbon-kissinger "At Bilderberg's bigwig bash two things are guaranteed: Kissinger and secrecy"]. ''The Guardian''. May 20, 2023.</ref>

==== Biotech ====
Altman has several other investments in companies including [[Humane Inc.|Humane]], which was developing a wearable AI-powered device; Retro Biosciences, a research company aiming to extend human life by 10 years;<ref name="longevity">[https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/03/08/1069523/sam-altman-investment-180-million-retro-biosciences-longevity-death/ "Sam Altman invested $180 million into a company trying to delay death"]. ''MIT Technology Review''.</ref> [[Boom Technology]], a [[supersonic]] airline developer; [[Cruise (autonomous vehicle)|Cruise]], a self-driving car company later acquired by [[General Motors]]; and Helion Energy, an American fusion research company.<ref name=WaPoDeVynck>De Vynck, Gerrit. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/12/23/open-ai-sam-altman-investments-companies/ "OpenAI founder Sam Altman's sprawling network of investments"]. ''The Washington Post''. December 23, 2023.</ref>

During the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], Altman helped fund and create Project Covalence to help researchers rapidly launch clinical trials in partnership with TrialSpark, a clinical trial startup.<ref>Herper, Matthew. [https://www.statnews.com/2020/06/16/tech-investor-covid-trials/ "Teaming tech and pharma, effort seeks to speed Covid-19 clinical trials"]. ''[[Stat (website)''. June 16, 2020.</ref> During the depositor run on [[Silicon Valley Bank]] in mid-March 2023, Altman provided capital to multiple [[Startup company|startups]].<ref>Krystal, Hu. [https://www.reuters.com/business/tech-execs-race-save-startups-extinction-after-svb-collapse-2023-03-12/ "Tech execs race to save startups from 'extinction' after SVB collapse"]. ''[[Reuters]]''. March 12, 2023.</ref> Altman invests in technology startups and nuclear energy companies. Some of his portfolio companies include [[Airbnb]], [[Stripe (company)|Stripe]] and [[Joe Betts-LaCroix#Biotechnology & biomedicine|Retro Biosciences]].<ref name="longevity" />

Along with Peter Thiel, Altman was an early seed investor in Minicircle, "a longevity biotech company focused on developing gene therapies to extend human lifespans."<ref>Haskins, Caroline. [https://www.wired.com/story/startup-nations-donald-trump-legislation/ "'Startup Nation' Groups Say They're Meeting Trump Officials to Push for Deregulated 'Freedom Cities'"]. ''Wired''.</ref> He also invested in charter city projects [[Próspera]] and [[Praxis (proposed city)|Praxis]],<ref>Bernstein, Joseph. [https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/12/style/praxis-city-dryden-brown.html "Who Would Give This Guy Millions to Build His Own Utopia?"]. ''The New York Times''. December 12, 2023.</ref> which have gotten additional financial support from author and former [[Coinbase]] CTO [[Balaji Srinivasan]].<ref>[https://www.lemonde.fr/en/pixels/article/2023/12/04/from-praxis-to-prospera-silicon-valley-is-longing-to-break-free-from-countries-worldwide_6309767_13.html "From Praxis to Prospera, Silicon Valley longs to break free"]. December 4, 2023.</ref> Both cities have been linked by various publications and journalists to the Network State movement.<ref>Ropek, Lucas. [https://gizmodo.com/worst-new-trend-of-2024-techno-colonialism-and-the-network-state-movement-2000525617 "Worst New Trend of 2024: Techno-Colonialism and the Network State Movement"]. ''Gizmodo''. December 27, 2024.</ref>

==== Reddit ====
For eight days in 2014, Altman was the CEO of [[Reddit]], a [[social media]] company, after CEO [[Yishan Wong]] resigned.<ref>Acres, Tom. [https://news.sky.com/story/who-is-sam-altman-the-openai-boss-and-chatgpt-guru-who-is-now-one-of-ais-biggest-players-12898698 "Who is Sam Altman? The OpenAI boss and ChatGPT guru who became one of AI's biggest players"]. Sky News. November 22, 2023.</ref><ref>[http://blog.samaltman.com/a-new-team-at-reddit "A New Team At Reddit"]. Sam Altman. November 13, 2014.</ref> On July 10, 2015, he announced the return of [[Steve Huffman]] as CEO.<ref>Robertson, Adi. [https://www.theverge.com/2015/7/10/8931017/reddit-ceo-ellen-pao-steps-down "Interim Reddit CEO Ellen Pao replaced by company co-founder Steve Huffman"]. ''The Verge''. July 10, 2015.</ref> He remained on its board until 2022.<ref name="fortune240222">Robison, Kyle. [https://fortune.com/2024/02/22/sam-altman-third-largest-reddit-shareholder-ipo/ "Sam Altman is set to be one of the biggest winners in Reddit's IPO, with a stake that could be worth $435 million"]. ''Fortune''. February 22, 2024.</ref> Altman invested in multiple rounds of funding for Reddit (in 2014, 2015, and 2021).<ref name="fortune240222" /><ref>Novet, Jordan. [https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/22/openai-ceo-sam-altman-stands-to-net-millions-as-reddit-goes-public.html "OpenAI CEO Sam Altman stands to net millions as Reddit goes public"]. CNBC. February 22, 2024.</ref> Prior to Reddit's [[initial public offering]] in 2024, Altman was listed as its third-largest shareholder, with around 9% ownership.<ref>Ghaffary, Shirin. [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-22/openai-s-altman-listed-as-major-reddit-shareholder-in-ipo-filing "OpenAI's Altman Listed as Major Reddit Shareholder in IPO Filing"]. Bloomberg News. February 22, 2024.</ref>

==== Worldcoin ====
[[File:SlavaBlazerPhotography-31.jpg|thumb|Orb-shaped iris scanners on display]]
In 2019, Altman co-founded the for-profit company Tools For Humanity.<ref name="techFound">Melinek, Jacquelyn. [https://techcrunch.com/podcast/sam-altmans-crypto-project-worldcoin-got-more-coin-in-latest-115m-raise/ "Sam Altman's crypto project Worldcoin got more coin in latest $115M raise"]. ''TechCrunch''. March 29, 2024.</ref> The company promoted the [[World (blockchain)|Worldcoin]] [[cryptocurrency]] and eye-scanning systems to provide [[proof of personhood]] and authentication.<ref>[https://www.wired.com/story/get-free-crypto-orb-scans-eye/ "You Can Get This Free Crypto—If the 'Orb' Scans Your Eye"]. ''[[Wired (magazine)''. October 21, 2021.</ref><ref>Hart, Robert. [https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/07/24/what-is-worldcoin-heres-what-to-know-about-the-eyeball-scanning-crypto-project-launched-by-openais-sam-altman/ "What Is Worldcoin? Here's What To Know About The Eyeball-Scanning Crypto Project Launched By OpenAI's Sam Altman"]. ''[[Forbes]]''. July 24, 2023.</ref> However, it has engaged in deceptive marketing practices to drive sign-ups.<ref>Nieva, Richard. [https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/richardnieva/worldcoin-crypto-eyeball-scanning-orb-problems "Worldcoin Promised Free Crypto If They Scanned Their Eyeballs With "The Orb." Now They Feel Robbed."]. ''BuzzFeed News''. April 21, 2022.</ref><ref>Guo, Eileen. [https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/04/06/1048981/worldcoin-cryptocurrency-biometrics-web3/ "Deception, exploited workers, and cash handouts: How Worldcoin recruited its first half a million test users"]. ''MIT Technology Review''. April 6, 2022.</ref> By 2023, Tools For Humanity had scanned two million people's eyes and raised $250 million from several investors, including [[Andreessen Horowitz]] and [[Sam Bankman-Fried]].<ref name=ArsT_2023-07-24>Hammond, George. [https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/07/ready-for-your-eye-scan-worldcoin-launches-but-not-quite-worldwide/ "Ready for your eye scan? Worldcoin launches—but not quite worldwide"]. ''Ars Technica''. July 24, 2023.</ref><ref name="techFound"/><ref>Currie, Richard. [https://www.theregister.com/2023/05/16/worldcoin_fundraising/ "Sam Altman rattles tin for Worldcoin crypto startup"]. ''The Register''. May 16, 2023.</ref>

Kenya was one of the first countries to register WorldCoin. The promise of free money led to rapid growth in Kenya until WorldCoin promotion was paused by regulators.<ref>Njanja, Annie. [https://techcrunch.com/2023/08/02/kenya-suspends-worldcoin-scans-over-security-privacy-and-financial-concerns "Kenya suspends Worldcoin scans over security, privacy and financial concerns"]. TechCrunch. August 2, 2023.</ref> Citing legal concerns over [[biometrics|biometric data]] privacy and potential fraud concerns, regulators in France, the United Kingdom, Bavaria, South Korea,  Spain, Portugal, and Hong Kong have investigated or suspended WorldCoin.<ref>
; Sources for investigation:
* Howcroft, Elizabeth. [https://www.reuters.com/technology/frances-privacy-watchdog-says-worldcoin-legality-seems-questionable-2023-07-28/ "France's watchdog questions legality of Worldcoin biometric data collection"]. ''Reuters''. July 31, 2023.
* Howcroft, Elizabeth. [https://www.reuters.com/technology/uk-data-watchdog-make-enquiries-worldcoin-crypto-project-2023-07-25/ "UK data watchdog to make enquiries about Worldcoin crypto project"]. ''Reuters''. July 25, 2023.
* Howcroft, Elizabeth. [https://www.reuters.com/technology/german-data-watchdog-probing-worldcoin-crypto-project-official-says-2023-07-31/ "German data watchdog probing Worldcoin crypto project, official says"]. ''Reuters''. July 31, 2023.
* Atkinson, Sophie. [https://readwrite.com/south-korea-launches-investigation-into-worldcoin/ "South Korea launches investigation into Worldcoin"]. ''ReadWrite''. March 4, 2024.
; Sources suspension:
* Njanja, Annie. [https://techcrunch.com/2023/08/02/kenya-suspends-worldcoin-scans-over-security-privacy-and-financial-concerns "Kenya suspends Worldcoin scans over security, privacy and financial concerns"]. TechCrunch. August 2, 2023.
* Roth, Emma. [https://www.theverge.com/2023/8/2/23817147/kenya-worldcoin-suspended-sam-altman-eyeball-scanning "Kenya suspends Sam Altman's eyeball-scanning crypto project"]. The Verge. August 2, 2023.
* Njanja, Annie. [https://techcrunch.com/2023/08/15/worldcoin-in-kenya/ "Worldcoin ignored initial order to stop iris scans in Kenya, records show"]. TechCrunch. August 15, 2023.
* [https://www.reuters.com/technology/hong-kong-regulator-directs-worldcoin-cease-operations-citing-privacy-concerns-2024-05-22/ "Hong Kong regulator directs Worldcoin to cease operations citing privacy concerns"]. ''Reuters''. May 23, 2024.
* [https://www.ft.com/content/204c1c81-7a6f-4a6a-907e-8782b9d1bed2 "Spain blocks Sam Altman's eyeball-scanning venture Worldcoin"]. ''www.ft.com''.
* [https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/spain-blocks-sam-altmans-eyeball-scanning-venture-worldcoin-ft-reports-2024-03-06/ "Spain temporarily blocks Sam Altman's eyeball-scanning venture Worldcoin"]. ''www.reuters.com''. March 6, 2024.
* Howcroft, Elizabeth. [https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/sam-altmans-worldcoin-ordered-stop-data-collection-portugal-2024-03-26/ "Portugal orders Sam Altman's Worldcoin to halt data collection"]. ''Reuters''. March 26, 2024.
</ref> WorldCoin has never been offered in the United States and the company limits its disclosures due to regulatory scrutiny.<ref name=ArsT_2023-07-24/>

==== Energy investments ====
Altman is chairman of the board for [[Helion Energy]], a company focused on developing [[nuclear fusion]].<ref>Hiller, Jennifer. [https://www.wsj.com/articles/tech-billionaires-bet-on-fusion-as-holy-grail-for-business-9a48a2ac "Tech Billionaires Bet on Fusion as Holy Grail for Business"]. ''[[Wall Street Journal]]''. April 23, 2023.</ref><ref>Mui, Christine. [https://www.politico.com/newsletters/digital-future-daily/2024/01/22/silicon-valley-fusion-crush-sam-altman-davos-00137031 "Silicon Valley's crush on fusion"]. ''[[Politico]]''. January 22, 2024.</ref> He also invested in [[Exowatt]], a solar energy startup that aims to provide clean energy to data centers.<ref>Ramkumar, Amrith. [https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/sam-altman-investment-exowatt-energy-startup-ai-data-centers-eeeca766 "Exclusive {{!"]. ''WSJ''. April 22, 2024.</ref>

In March 2021, Altman and investment banker Michael Klein co-founded AltC Acquisition Corp, a [[special-purpose acquisition company]] (SPAC), where he was also the CEO.<ref name="reuters spac">[https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN2B71D2/ "Y Combinator's Sam Altman teams up with Michael Klein to launch SPAC looking to raise $1 billion"]. Reuters. March 15, 2021.</ref><ref>[https://altcacquisitioncorp.com/team/sam-altman/ "AltC Acquisition Corp - Sam Altman"]. ''AltC Acquisition Corp''.</ref> In May 2024, Oklo Inc. completed a merger with the SPAC to become a public company. Altman remained as chairman of Oklo following the merger<ref>Field, Hayden. [https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/10/sam-altman-takes-nuclear-startup-oklo-public-to-power-ai-ambitions.html "Sam Altman's nuclear energy company Oklo plunges 54% in NYSE debut"]. [[CNBC]]. May 10, 2024.</ref> until stepping down in April 2025 to "avoid conflict of interest"<ref>Muir, Martha. [https://www.ft.com/content/a511bae0-d19f-4ebd-9520-69d3f89d8556 "Sam Altman steps down as chair of nuclear power supplier Oklo to avoid conflict of interest"]. ''Financial Times''. April 22, 2025.</ref> and "open up opportunities for future deals between OpenAI and Oklo."<ref>Hamilton, Katherine. [https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/openai-ceo-sam-altman-to-resign-as-oklo-chairman-10a53edc "OpenAI CEO Sam Altman to Resign as Oklo Chairman"]. ''WSJ''. April 22, 2025.</ref>

=== OpenAI ===
==== OpenAI begins ====
OpenAI was initially founded as a [[nonprofit organization]] by Altman, [[Greg Brockman]], [[Elon Musk]], [[Jessica Livingston]], Peter Thiel, [[Microsoft]], [[Amazon Web Services]], [[Infosys]], and YC{{nbsp}}Research. When OpenAI launched in 2015, it had raised pledges for $1{{nbsp}}billion.<ref>Olanoff, Drew. [https://techcrunch.com/2015/12/11/non-profit-openai-launches-with-backing-from-elon-musk-and-sam-altman/ "Artificial Intelligence Nonprofit OpenAI Launches With Backing From Elon Musk And Sam Altman"]. ''[[TechCrunch]]''. December 11, 2015.</ref> In 2019, OpenAI stated that $130 million of the pledged funds had been collected.<ref name="St">[https://openai.com/our-structure "Our structure"]. ''OpenAI''. June 28, 2023.</ref> [[TechCrunch]] reported that YC Research never contributed any of their pledged funds.<ref>Harris, Mark. [https://techcrunch.com/2023/05/17/elon-musk-used-to-say-he-put-100m-in-openai-but-now-its-50m-here-are-the-receipts/ "Elon Musk used to say he put $100M in OpenAI, but now it's $50M: Here are the receipts"]. ''[[TechCrunch]]''.</ref>

Altman said in 2015 that they were partly motivated by concerns about [[AI safety]] and [[existential risk from artificial general intelligence]].<ref name="csmonitor">Lewontin, Max. [https://www.csmonitor.com/Technology/2015/1214/Open-AI-Effort-to-democratize-artificial-intelligence-research "Open AI: Effort to democratize artificial intelligence research?"]. ''[[The Christian Science Monitor]]''. December 14, 2015.</ref><ref name=wired_inside>[https://www.wired.com/2016/04/openai-elon-musk-sam-altman-plan-to-set-artificial-intelligence-free/ "Inside OpenAI, Elon Musk's Wild Plan to Set Artificial Intelligence Free"]. ''[[Wired (magazine)''. April 27, 2016.</ref> Altman highlighted the importance of [[open-source]] and making AI for collective good for humanity, above financial stakeholders in response to mitigation of risk. Altman noted it will be a decades-long project that eventually surpasses human intelligence.<ref name="wired_far_more">Metz, Cade. [https://www.wired.com/2015/12/elon-musks-billion-dollar-ai-plan-is-about-far-more-than-saving-the-world/ "Elon Musk's Billion-Dollar AI Plan Is About Far More Than Saving the World"]. ''[[Wired (magazine)''. December 15, 2015.</ref> [[Walter Isaacson]] opined that Altman had "Musk-like intensity".<ref>Isaacson, Walter. [https://books.google.com/books?id=6_mzEAAAQBAJ "Elon Musk"]. [[Simon and Schuster]]. September 13, 2023.</ref>

==== Deepening investment in OpenAI ====
In 2018, Musk, a long-time personal friend of Altman's, resigned from his Board of Directors seat, citing "a potential future [[Conflict of interest|conflict [of interest]]]" with his role as CEO of [[Tesla, Inc.|Tesla]] due to [[Tesla Autopilot|Tesla's AI development for self-driving cars.]]<ref name="musk_resigns">Vincent, James. [https://www.theverge.com/2018/2/21/17036214/elon-musk-openai-ai-safety-leaves-board "Elon Musk leaves board of AI safety group to avoid conflict of interest with Tesla"]. ''The Verge''. February 21, 2018.</ref><ref name="wired_inside" /> In February 2024, Musk sued OpenAI and Altman, alleging they broke the company's founding agreement by prioritizing profit over benefit to humanity.<ref>Vipers, Gareth. [https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/elon-musk-sues-openai-sam-altman-for-breach-of-contract-0864979d "Elon Musk Sues OpenAI, Sam Altman, Saying They Abandoned Founding Mission"]. ''Wall Street Journal''. March 1, 2024.</ref> OpenAI executives, including Altman, dismissed these claims in a blog post.<ref>[https://openai.com/blog/openai-elon-musk "OpenAI and Elon Musk"]. ''Open AI''. March 5, 2024.</ref> The post said that the startup received only $45{{nbsp}}million from Musk instead of his pledged $1{{nbsp}}billion, and that Musk proposed to merge it with Tesla.<ref>Singh, Manish. [https://techcrunch.com/2024/03/05/openai-response-elon-musk-lawsuit "OpenAI says Musk only ever contributed $45 million, wanted to merge with Tesla or take control"]. ''TechCrunch''. March 6, 2024.</ref>

In March 2019, Altman left Y Combinator to focus full time as CEO of OpenAI.<ref name=":1">De Vynck, Gerrit. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/04/09/sam-altman-openai-chatgpt/ "The man who unleashed AI on an unsuspecting Silicon Valley"]. ''The Washington Post''. April 9, 2023.</ref><ref name="openailp" /> OpenAI planned to spend $1 billion "within five years, and possibly much faster".<ref>Murgia, Madhumita. [https://www.ft.com/content/d4280856-b92d-11e9-8a88-aa6628ac896c "DeepMind runs up higher losses and debts in race for AI"]. ''[[Financial Times]]''. August 7, 2019.</ref> Altman stated that even a billion dollars may turn out to be insufficient, and that the lab may ultimately need "more capital than any non-profit has ever raised" to achieve [[artificial general intelligence]] (AGI).<ref>[https://fortune.com/2019/10/03/openai-will-need-more-capital-than-any-non-profit-has-ever-raised/ "OpenAI Will Need More Capital Than Any Non-Profit Has Ever Raised"]. ''Fortune''.</ref>

==== Release of ChatGPT ====
In December 2022, OpenAI received widespread media coverage after launching a free preview of ChatGPT, a new AI [[chatbot]] based on GPT-3.5. According to OpenAI, the preview received over a million signups within the first five days.<ref>Roose, Kevin. [https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/05/technology/chatgpt-ai-twitter.html "The Brilliance and Weirdness of ChatGPT"]. ''The New York Times''. December 5, 2022.</ref> According to anonymous sources cited by [[Reuters]] in December 2022, OpenAI Global, LLC was projecting $200 million of revenue in 2023 and $1 billion in revenue in 2024.<ref>Dastin, Jeffrey. [https://www.reuters.com/business/chatgpt-owner-openai-projects-1-billion-revenue-by-2024-sources-2022-12-15/ "Exclusive: ChatGPT owner OpenAI projects $1 billion in revenue by 2024"]. ''Reuters''. December 15, 2022.</ref>

[[File:Chatgpt usage.svg|thumb|The percentage of US adults who have ever used ChatGPT, according to [[Pew Research]], is shown. As of March 2025,  58% of those under 30 have used the chatbot.<ref>Multiple sources:
* Vogels, Emily A.. [https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/05/24/a-majority-of-americans-have-heard-of-chatgpt-but-few-have-tried-it-themselves/ "A majority of Americans have heard of ChatGPT, but few have tried it themselves"]. ''Pew Research Center''. May 24, 2023.
* Park, Eugenie. [https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/08/28/most-americans-havent-used-chatgpt-few-think-it-will-have-a-major-impact-on-their-job/ "Most Americans haven't used ChatGPT; few think it will have a major impact on their job"]. ''Pew Research Center''. August 28, 2023.
* McClain, Colleen. [https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/03/26/americans-use-of-chatgpt-is-ticking-up-but-few-trust-its-election-information/ "Americans' use of ChatGPT is ticking up, but few trust its election information"]. ''Pew Research Center''. March 26, 2024.
* Sidoti, Olivia. [https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/06/25/34-of-us-adults-have-used-chatgpt-about-double-the-share-in-2023/ "34% of U.S. adults have used ChatGPT, about double the share in 2023"]. ''Pew Research''. June 25, 2025.</ref>]]
Altman testified before the [[United States Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law]] on May 16, 2023, about issues of AI oversight.<ref>[https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-live-openai-ceo-sam-altman-testifies-before-senate-judiciary-committee "WATCH: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman testifies before Senate Judiciary Committee"]. ''PBS NewsHour''. May 15, 2023.</ref> After the success of ChatGPT, Altman made a world tour in May 2023, during which he visited 22 countries and met multiple leaders and diplomats, including British prime minister [[Rishi Sunak]], French president [[Emmanuel Macron]], Spanish prime minister [[Pedro Sánchez]], German chancellor [[Olaf Scholz]], Indian prime minister [[Narendra Modi]], South Korean president [[Yoon Suk-yeol]] and Israeli president [[Isaac Herzog]], and [[European Commission]] president [[Ursula von der Leyen]].<ref name="Intelligencer" /> Altman was named one of the [[Time 100|100 most influential people in the world]] by [[Time (magazine)|''Time'']] magazine.<ref>[https://time.com/collection/100-most-influential-people-2023/ "Time 100"]. ''[[Time (magazine)''. April 13, 2023.</ref>

[[File:Sam Altman speaking at TED.jpg|thumb|Altman at [[TED (conference)|TED]] in 2025]]The emergence of the Chinese AI company [[DeepSeek]] led major Chinese tech firms to embrace an [[open-source]] strategy, intensifying competition with OpenAI. Altman acknowledged the uncertainty regarding U.S. government approval for AI cooperation with China, but emphasized the importance of fostering dialogue between technological leaders in both nations.<ref>[https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3298396/openai-keen-work-china-ceo-sam-altman-says-deepseek-rattles-tech-market "OpenAI CEO discusses AI collaboration and regulatory challenges"]. ''South China Morning Post''. February 2025.</ref>

==== Removal and reinstatement as OpenAI CEO ====
''Main article: [[Removal of Sam Altman from OpenAI]]''

On November 17, 2023, OpenAI's board, composed of researcher [[Helen Toner]], [[Quora]] CEO [[Adam D'Angelo]], AI governance advocate Tasha McCauley, and, most prominently in the firing, OpenAI co-founder and chief scientist [[Ilya Sutskever]], announced that they had made the decision to remove Altman as CEO and Greg Brockman from the board, both of whom were co-founders.<ref name="web.archive.org">Difeliciantonio, Chase. [https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/sam-altman-fired-openai-candid-board-18499330.php "Sam Altman pushed out from OpenAI for not being 'candid' with board"]. ''San Francisco Chronicle''. January 12, 2024.</ref> The announcement cited that Altman "was not consistently candid in his communications" in a public announcement on the OpenAI blog.<ref>[https://openai.com/blog/openai-announces-leadership-transition "OpenAI announces leadership transition"]. ''openai.com''.</ref><ref name="web.archive.org" /> In response, Brockman resigned from his role as President of OpenAI.<ref>Peters, Jay. [https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/17/23965982/openai-ceo-sam-altman-fired "Sam Altman fired as CEO of OpenAI"]. ''The Verge''. November 17, 2023.</ref> The day after Altman was removed, the board discussed bringing him back to OpenAI.<ref name=":2">Das, Shanti. [https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/nov/18/earthquake-at-chatgpt-developer-as-senior-staff-quit-after-sacking-of-boss-sam-altman "Sam Altman 'was working on new venture' before sacking from OpenAI"]. ''The Observer''. November 18, 2023.</ref>

On November 20, Microsoft CEO [[Satya Nadella]] announced that Altman would be joining Microsoft to lead a new advanced AI research team.<ref>[https://www.reuters.com/technology/microsoft-ceo-says-sam-altman-will-be-joining-microsoft-2023-11-20/ "Microsoft CEO says Sam Altman will be joining Microsoft"]. ''[[Reuters]]''. November 20, 2023.</ref> Two days later, OpenAI employees published an [[open letter]] to the board threatening to leave OpenAI and join Microsoft, where all employees had been promised jobs, unless all board members step down and reinstate Altman as CEO. 505 employees initially signed, which later grew to over 700 out of 770 total employees.<ref>Warren, Tom. [https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/20/23968988/openai-employees-resignation-letter-microsoft-sam-altman "Hundreds of OpenAI employees threaten to resign and join Microsoft"]. ''The Verge''. November 20, 2023.</ref> This included Ilya Sutskever, who initially advocated for firing Altman, but then stated on Twitter "I regret my participation in the board's actions." Late in the night on November 20, OpenAI announced that they had reached an "agreement in principle" for Altman to return as CEO and Brockman to return as president.<ref name="verge patel heath">Heath, Alex. [https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/22/23967223/sam-altman-returns-ceo-open-ai "Sam Altman to return as CEO of OpenAI"]. ''The Verge''. November 22, 2023.</ref><ref name="NYT-reinstated">Cade, Metz. [https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/22/technology/openai-sam-altman-returns.html "Sam Altman Is Reinstated as OpenAI's Chief Executive"]. ''The New York Times''. November 22, 2023.</ref> On November 21, 2023, after continued negotiations, Altman and Brockman returned to the company in their prior roles along with a reconstructed board made up of new members [[Bret Taylor]] (as chairman) and [[Lawrence Summers]], with D'Angelo remaining. In August 2024, Brockman announced he would take a sabbatical through the end of the year; he returned to the company in November 2024.<ref>Wiggers, Kyle. [https://techcrunch.com/2024/08/05/openai-co-founder-leaves-for-anthropic/ "OpenAI co-founder Schulman leaves for Anthropic, Brockman takes extended leave"]. ''TechCrunch''. 2024-08-06.</ref><ref>Heath, Alex. [https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/22/23967223/sam-altman-returns-ceo-open-ai "Breaking: Sam Altman to return as CEO of OpenAI"]. ''The Verge''. November 22, 2023.</ref>

In May 2024, after [[OpenAI#Non-disparagement agreement|OpenAI's non-disparagement agreements]] were exposed, Altman was accused of lying when claiming to have been unaware of the equity cancellation provision for departing employees who don't sign the agreement.<ref>Getahun, Hannah. [https://www.businessinsider.com/sam-altman-openai-nda-clause-vested-equity-ilya-sutskever-2024-5 "Sam Altman addresses 'potential equity cancellation' in OpenAI exit agreements after 2 high-profile departures"]. ''Business Insider''.</ref> Also in May, former board member [[Helen Toner]] explained the board's rationale for firing Altman in November 2023. She stated that Altman had withheld information, for example by not informing the board in advance of ChatGPT's release and by not disclosing his ownership of OpenAI's startup fund. She also alleged that two executives in OpenAI had reported "psychological abuse" from Altman, and provided screenshots and documentation to support their claims. She said that many employees feared retaliation if they didn't support Altman, and that when Altman was Loopt's CEO, the management team asked twice to fire him for what they called "deceptive and chaotic behavior".<ref>Lawler, Richard. [https://www.theverge.com/2024/5/28/24166713/openai-helen-toner-explains-why-sam-altman-was-fired "Former OpenAI board member explains why they fired Sam Altman"]. ''The Verge''. May 29, 2024.</ref><ref>Field, Hayden. [https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/29/former-openai-board-member-explains-why-ceo-sam-altman-was-fired.html "Former OpenAI board member explains why CEO Sam Altman got fired before he was rehired"]. ''CNBC''. May 29, 2024.</ref>

==Political engagement==
[[File:The_Prime_Minister_meets_with_AI_developers.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Prime Minister of the UK [[Rishi Sunak]] and [[Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology|Technology Secretary]] [[Chloe Smith]] meets with [[Demis Hassabis]] (CEO of [[DeepMind]]), [[Dario Amodei]] (CEO of [[Anthropic]]), and Altman (CEO of OpenAI) in May 2023.]]Altman had contemplated running for [[governor of California]] in the [[2018 California gubernatorial election|2018 election]], but later decided not to enter.<ref>Johnson, Eric. [https://www.vox.com/2018/12/10/18134926/sam-altman-kara-swisher-recode-decode-live-mannys-podcast-transcript-facebook-zuckerberg-ethics "Full Q&A: Y Combinator's Sam Altman and Recode's Kara Swisher discuss tech ethics, addiction and Facebook"]. ''Vox''. December 10, 2018.</ref> In 2018, Altman announced "the United Slate", a political project to improve U.S. housing and healthcare policy.<ref>Romm, Tony. [https://www.vox.com/2017/7/31/16066640/sam-altman-united-slate-health-care-housing-california-2018-midterm-elections-trump "Sam Altman will spend big on a new political movement to fix U.S. housing, health care and more"]. ''[[Vox (website)''. July 31, 2017.</ref> In 2019, Altman held a fundraiser at his home in San Francisco for 2020 Democratic presidential candidate and fellow tech entrepreneur [[Andrew Yang]].<ref>Russell, Melia. [https://www.businessinsider.com/andrew-yang-talks-tech-san-francisco-sam-altman-fundraiser-2019-11 "Andrew Yang preached his tech-friendly gospel at Sam Altman's San Francisco house: You can't treat tech like oil companies and breaking up Amazon won't bring malls back"]. ''[[Business Insider]]''. November 14, 2019.</ref> In May 2020, Altman donated $250,000 to [[American Bridge 21st Century]], a [[Political action committee|super PAC]] supporting Democratic presidential candidate [[Joe Biden]].<ref>Tindera, Michela. [https://www.forbes.com/sites/michelatindera/2020/05/22/silicon-valleys-sam-altman-gave-250000-to-democratic-super-pac-supporting-biden/ "Silicon Valley's Sam Altman Gave $250,000 To Democratic Super-PAC Supporting Biden"]. ''[[Forbes]]''. May 22, 2020.</ref>

Altman is a supporter of [[land value tax]]ation<ref>[https://twitter.com/sama/status/1584628826734460928 "national land value tax FTW!"]. ''X (formerly Twitter)''.</ref> and the payment of [[universal basic income]] (UBI).<ref name="ubi">Varanasi, Lakshmi. [https://www.businessinsider.com/openai-sam-altman-universal-basic-income-idea-compute-gpt-7-2024-5 "OpenAI's Sam Altman has a new idea for a universal basic income"]. ''Business Insider''. May 12, 2024.</ref> In 2021, he published a blog post titled "Moore's Law for Everything", which stated his belief that within ten years, AI could generate enough value to fund a UBI of $13,500 per year to every adult in the United States.<ref>Shead, Sam. [https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/30/openai-ceo-sam-altman-says-ai-could-pay-for-ubi-experts-disagree.html "Silicon Valley leaders think A.I. will one day fund free cash handouts. But experts aren't convinced"]. ''CNBC''. March 30, 2021.</ref> In 2024, he suggested a new kind of UBI called "universal basic compute" to give everyone a "slice" of ChatGPT's computing power.<ref name="ubi" />

In 2023, Altman was involved in boosting Representative [[Dean Phillips]] as he prepared [[Dean Phillips 2024 presidential campaign|a challenge]] to President Joe Biden for the [[2024 Democratic National Convention|Democratic nomination]].<ref name="Return5">Schleifer, Theodore. [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/05/us/politics/sam-altman-openai-democrat-fundraising.html "OpenAI's C.E.O. Returns to Political Fund-Raising"]. ''The New York Times''. March 5, 2025.</ref><ref>Freedlander, David. [https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2024/01/biden-rival-dean-phillips-getting-help-from-sam-altman.html "Dean Phillips Met Sam Altman, Then Got Awfully Interested in AI"]. New York Magazine. January 18, 2024.</ref> On November 18, 2024, San Francisco Mayor-Elect [[Daniel Lurie]] named him to his transition team.<ref>[https://sfist.com/2024/11/18/daniel-lurie-names-openai-ceo-sam-altman-to-his-mayoral-transition-team/ "Daniel Lurie Names OpenAI CEO Sam Altman to His Mayoral Transition Team"]. ''SFist''. November 18, 2024.</ref> In December 2024, it was reported that Altman would donate $1 million to the Inaugural Fund for President [[Donald Trump]].<ref>[https://www.npr.org/2024/12/13/nx-s1-5227874/trump-bezos-zuckerberg-amazon-facebook-open-ai-meta-inauguration-fund "Tech moguls Altman, Bezos and Zuckerberg donate to Trump's inauguration fund"]. ''NPR''. December 13, 2024.</ref> Altman hosted a fundraiser in San Francisco on March 20, 2025, for Senator [[Mark Warner]], a Democrat up for [[2026 United States Senate election in Virginia|re-election in 2026]] in Virginia.<ref name="Return5" />

On July 4, 2025, Altman posted on [[Twitter|X]] sharing his political ideology, saying that he believed in "[[Technocapitalism|techno-capitalism]]" and found himself increasingly "politically homeless", criticizing the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] for no longer encouraging a "culture of innovation and entrepreneurship".<ref>Rodriguez, Salvador. [https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/04/openai-altman-july-4-zohran-mamdani.html "OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says he's 'politically homeless' in July 4 post bashing Democrats"]. ''CNBC''. July 4, 2025.</ref> In September 2025, Altman was interviewed by [[Tucker Carlson]]. The interview covered the death of former OpenAI researcher [[Suchir Balaji]], AI alignment, and Altman's views on whether ChatGPT should reflect distinctly American values.<ref>Dodge, Blake. [https://www.piratewires.com/p/what-happened-tucker-carlson-sam-altman-interview "Sam Altman (Generally) Doesn't Want to Be Your Moral Authority"]. ''Pirate Wires''. 2025-09-16.</ref>

==Personal life==
Altman has been a [[Vegetarianism|vegetarian]] since childhood.<ref>[https://rescale.com/blog/fireside-chat-with-sam-altman/ "Fireside Chat with Sam Altman"]. ''[[Rescale]]''. February 24, 2020.</ref> He is [[Gay men|gay]], and first disclosed his sexuality at the age of 17 in high school, where he spoke out after some students objected to a [[National Coming Out Day]] speaker.<ref name=Intelligencer /><ref name="newyorker2016">Friend, Tad. [https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/10/10/sam-altmans-manifest-destiny "Sam Altman's Manifest Destiny"]. ''[[The New Yorker]]''. October 3, 2016.</ref><ref name="SCMP 2023-11-24">Farah, Lynn. [https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/entertainment/article/3242681/meet-chatgpt-boss-sam-altman-whos-back-ceo-chair-microsoft-briefly-hired-him-his-openai-return-he "Meet ChatGPT boss Sam Altman, who's back in the CEO chair: Microsoft briefly hired him before his OpenAI return, he came out as LGBT in high school, and he splurges his millions on Tesla and McLaren"]. ''[[South China Morning Post]]''. November 24, 2023.</ref> He dated Loopt co-founder Nick Sivo for nine years. They broke up shortly after the company was acquired in 2012.<ref name="newyorker2016"/>

According to [[Keach Hagey]], Altman met his future husband Oliver Mulherin "in Peter Thiel's hot tub at 3 a.m." in 2015. Mulherin was a computer science student at the [[University of Melbourne]] at the time and later became an engineer. He worked on AI projects in Australia before moving to the United States to work for the dementia detection startup SPARK Neuro.{{sfn|Hagey|2025|p=275}} Altman married Mulherin in January 2024,<ref>Russell, Melia. [https://www.businessinsider.com/openai-ceo-sam-altman-married-oliver-mulherin-wedding-2024-1 "OpenAI CEO Sam Altman just got married"]. ''Business Insider''.</ref> at their estate in [[Hawaii]];<ref>Le, Linh. [https://e.vnexpress.net/news/trend/openais-sam-altman-ties-knot-with-same-sex-partner-on-43m-hawaii-estate-4700419.html "OpenAI's Sam Altman ties knot with same-sex partner on $43M Hawaii estate"]. ''VN Express''.</ref> the couple also live in [[Russian Hill, San Francisco]], and often spend weekends in [[Napa, California]].<ref name="SCMP 2023-11-24" /><ref>Metz, Cade. [https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/31/technology/sam-altman-open-ai-chatgpt.html "The ChatGPT King Isn't Worried, but He Knows You Might Be"]. ''[[The New York Times]]''. March 31, 2023.</ref> 

Altman and Mulherin committed to giving away most of their wealth by signing [[The Giving Pledge]] in May 2024.<ref>Valinsky, Jordan. [https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/28/tech/sam-altman-giving-pledge/index.html "OpenAI's Sam Altman vows to give away most of his wealth through the Giving Pledge"]. [[CNN Business]]. May 28, 2024.</ref> The couple has a son, born in 2025.<ref>Ahlgrim, Callie. [https://www.businessinsider.com/sam-altman-kids-never-smarter-than-ai-chatgpt-2025-6 "Sam Altman says his own kids will 'never be smarter than AI'"]. ''Business Insider''.</ref> "Altman has described himself as preparing for catastrophic scenarios", stating in 2016: "I have guns, gold, [[potassium iodide]], antibiotics, batteries, water, gas masks from the {{sic|[[Israel Defense Forces|Israel Defense Force]]}}, and a big patch of land in [[Big Sur]] I can fly to."<ref name="newyorker2016" />

In January 2025, Altman's sister Ann Altman filed a lawsuit alleging sexual abuse by Altman in the [[United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri|U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri]] in [[St. Louis]]. The lawsuit alleges that the abuse started when Ann was aged three and Sam was 12.<ref>Field, Hayden. [https://www.cnbc.com/2025/01/07/openais-sam-altman-denies-sexual-abuse-allegations-made-sister-ann.html "OpenAI CEO Sam Altman denies sexual abuse allegations made by his sister in lawsuit"]. ''[[CNBC]]''.</ref> Sam Altman, along with his mother Connie and younger brothers Max and Jack, issued a joint statement denying the allegations, describing them as "utterly untrue".<ref>Partridge, Joanna. [https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jan/08/openai-chief-executive-sam-altman-accused-of-sexual-abuse-by-sister-in-lawsuit "OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman accused of sexual abuse by sister in lawsuit"]. ''The Guardian''. January 8, 2025.</ref><ref>Altman, Sam. "My sister has filed a lawsuit against me. Here is a statement from my mom, brothers, and me".</ref><ref>Hoskins, Peter. [https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cz6lq6x2gd9o "OpenAI boss Sam Altman denies sexual abuse allegations made by sister"]. ''www.bbc.com''. January 8, 2025.</ref>

Sam Altman has also served on the board of three [[Hong Kong]]– and [[Singapore]]-based [[Special-purpose acquisition company|SPAC]] companies named Bridgetown (sponsored by [[Thiel Capital]] and [[Richard Li]]'s Pacific Century) alongside [[Matt Danzeisen]], chairman of the SPACs and spouse of Thiel.<ref name="bloomberg1">Chapman, Lizette. [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-09-23/bridgetown-spac-backed-by-peter-thiel-files-to-go-public "Bridgetown SPAC, Backed by Peter Thiel, Files to Go Public"]. 23 September 2020.</ref><ref>[https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1831236/000121390021004685/f424b40121_bridgetown2.htm "PROSPECTUS FILED PURSUANT TO RULE 424(B)(4) REGISTRATION NO. 333-251860 $260,000,000 Bridgetown 2 Holdings Limited"]. ''www.sec.gov''.</ref><ref>[https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1844028/000121390021012944/filename1.htm "Form S-1 REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933 Bridgetown 3 Holdings Limited"]. ''www.sec.gov''.</ref> Like Danzeisen, Altman was mentioned as a friend in Thiel's circle by ''[[Buzz Feed News|BuzzFeed News]]'' in 2017.<ref name="buzzfeed">Mac, Ryan. [https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ryanmac/peter-thiel-and-donald-trump "Peter Thiel Has Been Hedging His Bet On Donald Trump"]. ''BuzzFeed News''. 7 August 2017.</ref> He thanked Danzeisen for contributing to his essays on development of AI and China.<ref>김, 창수. [https://www.beyondx.ai/modeun/ "샘 올트만: AI가 집값을 반값으로 낮추는 미래에 대한 예측"]. ''비욘드엑스''. 13 November 2024.</ref><ref>[https://blog.samaltman.com/china "China"]. ''Sam Altman''.</ref> At a birthday party Thiel organized for Danzeisen ("on a balmy mid-November evening" in 2023), Thiel warned Altman that half of Altman's subordinates at OpenAI, who had supposedly been "programmed" by [[Eliezer Yudkowsky]], wanted to remove Altman.{{sfn|Hagey|2025|p=i}}<ref>Paul, Kari. [https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/mar/08/openai-sam-altman-reinstated "OpenAI reinstates CEO Sam Altman to board after firing and rehiring"]. ''The Guardian''. 9 March 2024.</ref><ref>Hagey, Keach. [https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/the-real-story-behind-sam-altman-firing-from-openai-efd51a5d "Exclusive {{!"]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. 28 March 2025b.</ref>

==References==

===Citations===
<references />

===Sources===
* Hagey, Keach. "The Optimist: Sam Altman, OpenAI, and the Race to Invent the Future". W. W. Norton & Company.

==External links==
{{Commons}}
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* [https://blog.samaltman.com Personal website]
* {{C-SPAN|117787}}

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