Sam Altman

FIRED ON A FRIDAY, BACK BY WEDNESDAY

Altman got fired by his own board on a Friday and was back by Wednesday. Before that: a St. Louis kid who dropped out of Stanford, built Loopt, ran Y Combinator, co-chaired a nonprofit called OpenAI — and then tried to raise $7 trillion for chips. He’s back running a nonprofit-controlled company planning a $500B Stargate.

1. 2003

   ST. LOUIS KID LANDS AT STANFORD

   Altman enrolled at Stanford to study computer science. He would leave after two years rather than finish the degree.

   SOURCES: TIMEreported

2. 2005

   DROPS OUT. BUILDS LOOPT. JOINS YC'S FIRST CLASS.

   Altman left Stanford to work on Loopt, a mobile location startup that entered Y Combinator's inaugural 2005 batch.

   SOURCES: Y Combinatorfirst-party · Y Combinatorfirst-party

3. Mar 2012

   LOOPT SELLS FOR $43.4 MILLION

   Green Dot agreed to acquire Loopt for $43.4 million in cash. Altman joined Green Dot after the acquisition and worked on mobile products and technology.

   SOURCES: SEC / Green Dotfirst-party

4. Feb 21, 2014

   PAUL GRAHAM HANDS HIM Y COMBINATOR

   Paul Graham announced that Altman would become president of Y Combinator, putting a founder from YC's first batch in charge of the accelerator.

   SOURCES: Y Combinatorfirst-party

5. Dec 11, 2015

   OPENAI ARRIVES AS A NONPROFIT

   OpenAI launched as a nonprofit AI research company. Sam Altman and Elon Musk were named co-chairs, with funders committing $1 billion in total support.

   SOURCES: OpenAIfirst-party

6. Mar 11, 2019

   THE NONPROFIT GROWS A CAPPED-PROFIT ARM

   OpenAI created OpenAI LP to raise the billions it said advanced AI would require. The nonprofit retained control, and Altman was listed as CEO.

   SOURCES: OpenAIfirst-party

7. May 20, 2019

   ALTMAN HANDS YC TO GEOFF RALSTON

   Altman announced that Geoff Ralston would take over as president of Y Combinator, ending Altman's five-year run leading YC.

   SOURCES: Y Combinatorfirst-party

8. Nov 30, 2022

   CHATGPT HITS THE PUBLIC

   OpenAI released ChatGPT as a free research preview. The conversational product turned the lab's work into a mass-market phenomenon and made Altman one of technology's most visible executives.

   SOURCES: OpenAIfirst-party

9. May 16, 2023

   THE BUILDER ASKS CONGRESS FOR RULES

   Altman testified before a Senate Judiciary subcommittee and argued for regulation that would incentivize AI safety while preserving access to the technology's benefits.

   SOURCES: U.S. Senate Judiciary Committeefirst-party · OpenAIfirst-party

10. Jul 24, 2023

    WORLDCOIN OPENS THE ORB

    Worldcoin, a project founded by Altman, launched around a World ID system that used iris scans to prove a user was a real human rather than an AI bot.

    SOURCES: Reutersreported

    

    LOOK INTO THE ORB

11. Nov 17, 2023 – Nov 22, 2023

    FIRED FRIDAY. BACK FIVE DAYS LATER.

    OpenAI's board removed Altman as CEO on November 17. Five days later the company announced an agreement for him to return with a new initial board.

    SOURCES: OpenAIfirst-party · Reutersreported

12. Jan 16, 2024

    AI NEEDS AN ENERGY BREAKTHROUGH

    At Davos, Altman said future AI would consume far more power than expected and would require an energy breakthrough, pointing to fusion, cheaper solar and storage.

    SOURCES: Reutersreported

13. Feb 9, 2024

    $5T-$7T CHIP DREAM

    Reuters relayed Wall Street Journal reporting that Altman was discussing a chip-building initiative that could require raising $5 trillion to $7 trillion. The talks were early-stage, not an accomplished raise.

    SOURCES: Reutersreported

14. Mar 1, 2024

    MUSK TAKES OPENAI AND ALTMAN TO COURT

    Elon Musk sued OpenAI and Altman, alleging the company had abandoned its original mission for profit. Those claims were allegations in Musk's lawsuit, not an independent finding.

    SOURCES: Reutersreported

15. May 20, 2024

    SCARLETT JOHANSSON VS. THE VOICE

    Johansson said OpenAI's Sky voice sounded eerily similar to hers after she had declined Altman's request to provide a voice. OpenAI denied copying her voice and paused Sky during the dispute.

    SOURCES: Reutersreported · Washington Postreported

16. Dec 13, 2024

    $1 MILLION FOR THE INAUGURAL FUND

    An OpenAI spokesperson confirmed that Altman planned a personal $1 million donation to President-elect Donald Trump's inaugural fund. Altman tied his public statement to U.S. AI leadership.

    SOURCES: Reutersreported

17. Jan 21, 2025

    STARGATE: UP TO $500 BILLION

    OpenAI announced Stargate, a new AI infrastructure company that said it intended to invest $500 billion over four years in U.S. AI infrastructure, beginning with $100 billion.

    SOURCES: OpenAIfirst-party

18. May 5, 2025

    THE NONPROFIT KEEPS THE KEYS

    OpenAI said its nonprofit would continue to control the company while its for-profit entity transitioned toward a public benefit corporation structure.

    SOURCES: OpenAIfirst-party

19. May 21, 2025

    $6.5 BILLION FOR JONY IVE'S AI HARDWARE TEAM

    OpenAI announced that Jony Ive's io team would join OpenAI. Reuters reported the transaction at $6.5 billion as OpenAI pushed toward AI-native hardware.

    SOURCES: OpenAIfirst-party · Reutersreported

20. Jun 17, 2025

    ALTMAN SAYS META IS WAVING $100 MILLION BONUSES

    Altman said Meta had offered OpenAI employees signing bonuses as high as $100 million. Reuters reported the claim; the figure remains attributed to Altman.

    SOURCES: Reutersclaimed