Fidji Simo, the current CEO of Instacart, is set to join OpenAI later this year as the company’s CEO of Applications. Simo, who has been a board member at OpenAI since March 2024, will transition out of her role at Instacart over the next few months and will continue to serve as Chair of Instacart’s board during this period. (Reuters)
In her new position, Simo will oversee OpenAI’s Applications division, which encompasses the business and operational teams responsible for bringing the company’s research to the public. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman emphasized that Simo’s leadership will allow him to focus more on research, computational development, and AI safety as the organization advances towards achieving superintelligence.
Simo brings extensive experience in product management and monetization from her previous roles at eBay and Meta. At Meta, she led significant product developments, including Facebook Live and Facebook Watch, and rose to become the head of the Facebook app . After joining Instacart in 2021, she played a pivotal role in taking the company public in 2023. (Wikipedia)
In a statement, Simo expressed her enthusiasm for joining OpenAI at a critical moment, highlighting the organization’s potential to accelerate human potential at an unprecedented pace. She emphasized her commitment to shaping AI applications toward the public good.
This leadership change follows OpenAI’s recent decision to reverse a major restructuring plan, maintaining its nonprofit parent’s control and likely reducing Altman’s power.
Source: (Techcrunch)
