Have you ever wondered who owns OpenAI? You wouldn't be the first to ask that question, but it's surprisingly difficult to find an answer.
OpenAI started a widespread boom in artificial intelligence (AI) in November 2022. The release of the ChatGPT chatbot, based on a powerful large language model (LLM), set new standards for what AI could do. Before ChatGPT, many saw AI as a mysterious technology trick. After some hands-on experience with ChatGPT, skepticism has evolved into a mix of wonder, fear, and enthusiasm about a computer system's ability to mimic human intelligence in many ways.
Related AI tools like the DALL-E image creation system and the Sora video generator put more wind in OpenAI's sails. One year later, OpenAI partners such as Microsoft (MSFT -2.69%) and Nvidia (NVDA -0.64%) had added billions of dollars to their market caps, largely thanks to their involvement with the ChatGPT phenomenon.
However, OpenAI is not a publicly traded company. The driving force behind the AI frenzy that started in 2022 is a very private business managed as a "capped-profit" organization.
So, who owns OpenAI? Well, it's complicated. Let's figure it out together.
OpenAI's ambitious goals in AI research
OpenAI was founded in December 2015. It was a nonprofit company at first, aiming to "advance digital intelligence in the way that is most likely to benefit humanity as a whole, unconstrained by a need to generate financial return."
The absence of financial goals, such as creating value for shareholders, allowed OpenAI to pursue its world-changing goals without distractions.
The capped-profit structure remains in 2025. The company has updated its mission statement, now aimed at "ensuring that safe artificial general intelligence is developed and benefits all of humanity." In the same breath, the company also says that it might never make a profit -- and it is "under no obligation to do so."
Who is on the board of directors for OpenAI Nonprofit?
The OpenAI Nonprofit organization has shared a few specific details about its operation, including a complete list of active board members. The original OpenAI Nonprofit board was revamped with the introduction of OpenAI LP and then again when Altman returned to OpenAI after a brief pause. The board has added more members on several occasions.
OpenAI does not disclose the board members' financial interests in the company, but the independent members must have no ownership of the organization at any given time. As mentioned earlier, that describes all board members except CEO Sam Altman at the time of writing.
The member list includes some familiar names:
- Chairman Bret Taylor is a tech industry veteran with C-suite and boardroom stints at giants including Shopify (SHOP +5.33%), Salesforce (CRM +1.15%), Twitter (now X), and Facebook, which is now Meta Platforms (META -1.04%).
- Adam D'Angelo was the chief technical officer of Facebook from 2006-08. He co-founded the question-and-answer forum Quora in 2009 and still serves as the private company's CEO.
- Dr. Sue Desmond-Hellmann has a long history of top-level leadership in organizations such as the Gates Foundation, Genentech, Procter and Gamble (PG +0.12%), and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).
- Nicole Seligman is a lawyer, a member of several corporate boards, and a former Sony (SONY -1.74%) executive.
- Dr. Zico Kolter is the Director of the Machine Learning Department at Carnegie Mellon University and has experience serving on several other technology companies' boards.
- Sam Altman is the current co-founder and CEO of OpenAI.
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How to invest in OpenAI
OpenAI is a private company with no immediate plans to sell stock on the public market. The semi-nonprofit company structure doesn't look tailor-made for supporting a public market entry; co-founder Altman often says that OpenAI will remain private under his watch.
In other words, there is no way to make a direct investment in OpenAI today, unless you're a deep-pocketed venture capitalist or technology giant with partnership plans. Accredited investors with million-dollar assets and the appropriate credentials can use services from Forge Global (FRGE +0.29%) and others to get that ball rolling.
The closest thing to an OpenAI investment for us ordinary retail investors is to buy shares of Microsoft. No one has closer ties to OpenAI than this software legend.
Chip designer Nvidia is another tech giant with exposure to OpenAI and the ChatGPT phenomenon. The company benefits when other businesses build high-powered computer systems to train and operate modern AI engines. Buying Nvidia shares gives you a nuts-and-bolts investment in one of OpenAI's most important infrastructure providers.
You can also go with an exchange-traded fund (ETF) focused on the AI space. This is far from a direct OpenAI bet but is a play on the long-term rise of AI systems and related technologies. Popular options include:
- Global X Robotics & Artificial Intelligence ETF (BOTZ +0.41%)
- Global X Artificial Intelligence & Technology ETF (AIQ +0.77%)
- iShares Future AI & Tech ETF (ARTY +1.01%)
- WisdomTree Artificial Intelligence and Innovation Fund (WTAI +0.66%)
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