OpenAI's Sam Altman Joins Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg And Others By Committing To Bill Gates' Pledge To Give Away 'Majority' Of His Wealth

OpenAI’s CEO and co-founder, Sam Altman, has committed to donating a majority of his wealth by signing up for Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates' pledge.

What Happened: Altman and his partner, Oliver Mulherin, have joined The Giving Pledge with a commitment to "pay it forward" and a pledge to give away a "majority" of their wealth.

The Giving Pledge, initiated by Bill Gates, Melinda French Gates, and Warren Buffett in 2010, encourages the world’s wealthiest individuals to donate most of their wealth to philanthropy during their lifetime or in their wills. Other notable signatories include Elon Musk, MacKenzie Scott, and Mark Zuckerberg.

Altman, who has no equity in OpenAI, made his debut on the Forbes and Bloomberg billionaires lists earlier this year. His wealth comes from a variety of investments, including stakes in companies like Reddit Inc., Stripe, Helion, and Retro Biosciences, as well as real estate and Y Combinator funds.

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The couple plans to focus their philanthropy on “supporting technology that helps create abundance for people,” aiming to further build societal “scaffolding.”

See Also: Elon Musk Is In A ‘League Of His Own,' Says Steve Jobs And Tesla CEO's Biographer: ‘He's A Serial Tasker'

Why It Matters: Altman’s wealth, estimated at $2 billion, is not primarily from AI. Before joining OpenAI, Altman was a successful angel investor with a portfolio of 125 startups.

Altman’s commitment to The Giving Pledge comes amid some controversy. In May, a former director of OpenAI alleged that the board was not informed of the ChatGPT launch, casting doubt on Altman’s leadership.

Despite the controversy, Altman remains committed to OpenAI’s mission, stating in early May that they are “making AGI” and it will be “worth it,” even if they "burn $500M or $50B."

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