Sarah Friar and Kevin Weil have been announced as the new chief financial officer and chief product officer at OpenAI, respectively. According to Altman, CEO of OpenAI, both individuals bring a wealth of experience that will help the company scale its operations, develop a growth strategy, and ensure that its teams have the necessary resources to succeed.
Kevin Weil expressed excitement about joining OpenAI, calling the company’s mission “perhaps the most important and transformative of them all.” Previously, he has worked on significant projects at Instagram, Twitter, Libra, and Planet Labs. Sarah Friar was most recently CEO of Nextdoor but also brings experience as Square’s CFO and from previous roles at Goldman Sachs, McKinsey, and Salesforce.
The appointments of Friar and Weil come after OpenAI faced criticism and scrutiny related to safety concerns as AI technology advances. Former researchers at the company raised concerns about the fast-paced nature of its development and potential risks associated with it. Despite these challenges, Friar expressed her commitment to helping OpenAI excel in its core areas of producing high-quality research and maximizing the benefits of AI technology for all users.
