Leader profile

Sam Altman

Samuel Harris Altman is an American entrepreneur and investor who has been the chief executive officer of the artificial intelligence company OpenAI since 2019. Altman attended Stanford University for two years before he dropped out and co-founded Loopt, a geosocial networking application for smartphones.

Current role

Role: CEO
Company: OpenAI
Official link: https://x.com/sama

Recent viewpoints

Best time in history to start a company

Sam Altman says this is the best time in history to start a company, with startups able to tackle far larger problems than in earlier eras.

Sam Altman Startups Source at 0:29

Paul Graham's weekly dinners encouraged early YC founders

Sam Altman recalls that Paul Graham cooked weekly dinners for early YC founders and excelled at making each founder believe their startup could become a major company.

Sam Altman Y Combinator Source at 2:10

YC advocates for founders to distribute economic power

Sam Altman describes YC as an advocate for founders and the startup movement, aimed at distributing economic power broadly rather than concentrating it.

Sam Altman Y Combinator Source at 4:56

AI agents shift value from experience to judgment

Sam Altman says AI agents lower the value of traditional experience and credentials, while increasing the importance of taste, agency, and business judgment.

Sam Altman Startups Source at 10:43

Hold conviction in ambitious ideas despite early criticism

Sam Altman says OpenAI was widely dismissed as wrong and irresponsible when it started, and he encourages founders to hold conviction in ambitious ideas despite years of criticism.

Sam Altman Artificial General Intelligence Source at 13:07

Recent interviews

Sam Altman's BIG AI PREDICTION: the greatest BOOM in GLOBAL COMMERCE

Sep 2, 2026

Sam Altman and David Senra on Building OpenAI to a Billion Users

Aug 23, 2026

Sam Altman: "Never a Better Time to Do a Startup"

Jul 28, 2026

Major topics

Design IterationLast interview Aug 15, 2026 TypographyLast interview Aug 15, 2026 InternationalizationLast interview Aug 15, 2026 Visual PrototypingLast interview Aug 15, 2026 Logo DesignLast interview Aug 15, 2026 Project PlanningLast interview Aug 15, 2026 Creative CollaborationLast interview Aug 15, 2026 Meaningful DesignLast interview Aug 15, 2026 Accessible ComputingLast interview Aug 15, 2026 Design ConstraintsLast interview Aug 15, 2026