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OpenAI CEO received $76,001 in pay last year, filing shows
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Provides factual data on OpenAI leadership compensation during a pivotal year; relevant to understanding OpenAI's governance structure and the incentives of its key decision-makers as it transitions toward a for-profit model.
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Summary
A 2023 IRS tax filing reveals OpenAI CEO Sam Altman received only $76,001 in compensation, consistent with his stated policy of taking minimal pay. The filing also discloses compensation for other key figures during a turbulent year that included the ChatGPT boom and Altman's brief ouster from the company. Notably, the filing excludes equity-based compensation and does not reflect OpenAI's broader financial structure.
Key Points
- •Sam Altman received $76,001 in 2023 compensation, up slightly from $73,546 in 2022, consistent with his stated minimal salary policy.
- •Altman claims no equity in OpenAI, though the company has discussed granting him a stake amid its transition toward a for-profit structure.
- •Ilya Sutskever, who played a key role in firing Altman, was the highest-paid listed officer at $322,201 in 2023.
- •Interim CEO Emmett Shear received only $3,720 for his brief tenure during Altman's ouster in November 2023.
- •The tax filing does not capture equity-based compensation or VC investments in OpenAI's for-profit entities, limiting financial transparency.
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| Page | Type | Quality |
|---|---|---|
| Sam Altman | Person | 40.0 |
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# OpenAI CEO received $76,001 in pay last year, filing shows
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By
[Biz Carson](https://fortune.com/author/biz-carson/)
Biz Carson,
[Rachel Metz](https://fortune.com/author/rachel-metz/)
Rachel Metz, and
[Bloomberg](https://fortune.com/author/bloomberg/)
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November 20, 2024, 7:38 PM ET
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OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman received a modest $76,001 in compensation last year, up slightly from $73,546 in 2022, a newly released tax filing shows.David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images
OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman received a modest $76,001 in compensation last year, up slightly from $73,546 in 2022, a newly released tax filing shows.
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Altman, who is [worth at least $2 billion](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-01/sam-altman-is-a-billionaire-thanks-to-vc-funds-startups), has [previously said](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/31/technology/sam-altman-open-ai-chatgpt.html) he gets paid “whatever the minimum for health insurance is.” He has also repeatedly said he does not own equity in OpenAI. However, the San Francisco-based artificial intelligence startup has discussed giving him a stake as part of a possible shift to becoming a for-profit business, Bloomberg [reported](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-09-25/openai-cto-mira-murati-says-she-will-leave-the-company).
Altman’s paycheck was included in a filing that US-based nonprofits are required to submit annually to the Internal Revenue Service. The 2023 disclosure covers a tumultuous period for OpenAI and the nonprofit that oversees it. The year started with the skyrocketing popularity of OpenAI’s chatbot ChatGPT and ended with [Altman’s brief ouster](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-12-09/openai-s-altman-ouster-was-result-of-drawn-out-tensions) after clashing with the board.
OpenAI’s co-founder and former chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, who played a key role in firing Altman [and left the company in May](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-05-14/openai
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