And then there was Sam Altman, making one of his first public appearances since a man allegedly threw a Molotov cocktail at the gate to his San Francisco home. The OpenAI CEO told VF that things have been “up and down, but calm enough,” after the incident, adding “it was a really difficult thing.”
Altman has linked the April 10 attack on his home in San Francisco’s Russian Hill neighborhood to a surge of media scrutiny, including a report published on April 6 by The New Yorker, written by Ronan Farrow and Andrew Marantz, which included accusations that Altman is a habitual liar and that his alleged serial lying briefly cost him his job at OpenAIi. “Sam Altman May Control Our Future. Can He Be Trusted?” read the headline.” (Vanity Fair and The New Yorker are both owned by Condé Nast, and Condé Nast has a publishing agreement with OpenAI.) The suspect— whom family members say is suffering from a mental health crisis— remains in custody without bail as he awaits an arraignment set for May 5.
Hours after the incident, Altman wrote that an “incendiary” article about him was published amid heightened anxiety around AI and may have made him a target— but he said he initially brushed off those concerns.
On Saturday, Altman told Vanity Fair he “didn’t read,” The New Yorker story. “I heard the fact check, but I think it was…” he continued, trailing off. “I obviously super disagree with the whole thing—” he said, then pausing, then emphasizing, “Pretty much the whole thing.”
“The New Yorker‘s investigation into OpenAI and Sam Altman was meticulously reported and fact-checked,” a spokesperson for the publication said in a statement released to Vanity Fair and other outlets. “The resulting story is fair and responsible. The New Yorker is proud to publish in-depth reporting on figures and institutions of consequence.”
