Sam Altman says OpenAI will put its mission before its share price

Sam Altman said OpenAI will put its mission ahead of its share price once it goes public, even if the stock “falls a lot”. The OpenAI chief executive said it in an interview with Vanity Fair, published on 5 October.

Vanity Fair global editorial director Mark Guiducci recorded the conversation in San Francisco on 11 September. It was the first of two interviews. Vanity Fair said on air that its parent company, Condé Nast, has a content deal with OpenAI.

“Then it falls”

Guiducci asked whether going public would change the soul of the company. Altman said OpenAI will not be like other public companies.

“Even when we go public, which we are not in a rush to do, we will still have a nonprofit that governs us, and we will remind investors and anyone that thinks about buying our shares that we are going to put the mission first.”

He said he believes the mission and strong returns are compatible. If they are ever in tension, the mission wins, he said. Altman has already ruled out a listing in 2026.

Guiducci asked what happens if the stock price falls because OpenAI misses its profit targets.

“Then it falls. Maybe it falls a lot, I don’t know.”

He said the shares would probably be very volatile from quarter to quarter. He said patient investors would be happy over time. OpenAI is ready to grow revenue more slowly than it could, he said.

No equity, and a regret

Altman confirmed he holds no direct equity in OpenAI. He has “this tiny, tiny sliver of exposure” through an old Y Combinator investment. He said the choice was a mistake, because most people do not think about the world that way.

“And weirdly, this big trust-destroying thing to not have equity.”

He said he used to be very motivated by money and still likes nice things. But he said there is no more “stuff” he wants. That is why he wishes he had just taken the stock, he said.

Guiducci asked whether he does it for power. Altman said that “would be closer to true”. He said he does it for the most interesting and most impactful job in the world, and to leave a mark.

The executives who left

Guiducci listed the executives who left OpenAI this year. They include its heads of ethics, safety systems and data centres. Its chief operating officer, Brad Lightcap, and its revenue chief also left.

Altman said the whole AI industry is growing at a pace without precedent in tech. About five years of company growth now happen in one, he said.

“I think it is normal that there are people who are great at one stage of a company that are not the right fit for the next. But normally it happens a little more slowly than this.”

The foundation

Guiducci said the OpenAI Foundation is now the largest in the world by assets, ahead of the Gates Foundation. It recently pledged $100m to Alzheimer’s research. The foundation plans to spend at least $1bn this year.

Altman said its two main areas are health and science, and helping society prepare for AI. He said he does not know when Alzheimer’s will be cured. But he said he expects “real progress in the next few years for some diseases”.