OpenAI has purchased the popular tech industry talk show TBPN — Technology Business Programming Network — marking its first acquisition of a media company. The show will report to Chris Lehane, OpenAI’s chief political operative.
TBPN, hosted by former tech founders John Coogan and Jordi Hays, is a three-hour daily live show on YouTube and X, focusing on tech, business, AI, and defense.
The show has developed a cult following in Silicon Valley, providing a venue for industry leaders to speak candidly and engage with insiders. Known as the Sports Center for the tech industry, the show features top tech CEOs like Mark Zuckerberg, Satya Nadella, Marc Benioff, and Sam Altman, discussing industry news and occasionally making headlines.
TBPN will maintain its brand, which OpenAI will help expand. According to The Wall Street Journal, TBPN is projected to generate over $30 million this year.
OpenAI also has a podcast for long-form talks with its tech creators.
OpenAI plans to leverage the founders’ “amazing comms and marketing instincts” outside the show. Fidji Simo, OpenAI’s head of AGI deployment, stated that TBPN will help “bring AI to the world in a way that helps people understand the full impact of this technology on their daily lives.” Simo noted that TBPN’s skills are crucial for a unique company like OpenAI, where traditional communication strategies don’t apply.
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TBPN will retain editorial independence, choosing their programming and guests.
The acquisition could raise eyebrows since OpenAI, a prominent AI lab nearing an IPO, is buying a talk show that discusses the company and its rivals. After the deal closes, TBPN will operate under OpenAI’s strategy team and report to Lehane, known for phrases like “vast right-wing conspiracy” used to deflect scrutiny of the Clinton White House. Lehane is also behind the crypto industry super PAC Fairshake and has influenced controversial policies such as preventing states from regulating AI and easing environmental restrictions.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who labeled TBPN as his favorite tech show in a social media post, believes the acquisition won’t alter TBPN’s commentary or critique of the company. “I don’t expect them to go any easier on us, am sure I’ll do my part to help enable that with occasional stupid decisions,” he wrote.
TBPN views the acquisition as a chance to go beyond commentary. “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,” Hays stated. “Moving from commentary to real impact in how this technology is distributed and understood globally is incredibly important to us.”