OpenAI is getting into the media business.
The AI tech giant has acquired TBPN, the red-hot streaming show that covers big business, with a heavy emphasis on tech. The show will continue to stream on YouTUbe, X and every pother platform where it is available, and OpenAI CEO of applications Fidji Simo told employees at the company that it will have editorial independence.
“TBPN will continue to run their programming, choose their guests, and make their own editorial decisions,” she wrote in a note to staff. “That’s foundational to their credibility, and it’s something we’re explicitly protecting as part of this agreement.”
So why is OpenAI buying the Gen Z CNBC? It’s about helping the company communicate.
“As I’ve been thinking about the future of how we communicate at OpenAI, one thing that’s become clear is that the standard communications playbook just doesn’t apply to us,” Simo wrote. “We’re not a typical company. We’re driving a really big technological shift. And with the mission of bringing AGI to the world comes a responsibility to help create a space for a real, constructive conversation about the changes AI creates—with builders and people using the technology at the center.”
TBPN’s founders and hosts Jordi Hays and John Coogan will help OpenAI on communications and marketing, and report to strategy executive Chris Lehane.
“I can’t wait to leverage their talent outside of the show to innovate on how we bring AI to the world in a way that helps people understand the full impact of this technology on their daily lives,” Simo wrote.
TBPN has become a Silicon Valley obsession, with their hours-long daily streams and in-depth conversations with founders. But OpenAI is getting into the video production business only a week after it exited the video generation business when it shut down Sora. TBPN, of course, is an entirely different sort of product.
“Over the past year, we’ve had a front-row seat not just to OpenAI, but to the entire ecosystem, covering the daily news, announcements, and launches in real time,” Hays said in a statement. “While we’ve been critical of the industry at times, after getting to know Sam and the OpenAI team, what stood out most was their openness to feedback and commitment to getting this right. Moving from commentary to real impact in how this technology is distributed and understood globally is incredibly important to us.”
