The OpenAI Alumni Network: 18 Trailblazing Startups Shaping the Future of AI
OpenAI, renowned for its groundbreaking AI developments like ChatGPT, has not only revolutionized artificial intelligence but also fostered a dynamic ecosystem of entrepreneurs. Former OpenAI employees have ventured into the startup world, establishing companies that are making significant strides in various sectors. This article highlights 18 notable startups founded by OpenAI alumni, showcasing their contributions to the evolving AI landscape.
1. Adept AI Labs
David Luan, previously OpenAI’s Vice President of Engineering, co-founded Adept AI Labs in 2021 after a tenure at Google. Adept focuses on developing AI tools designed to enhance employee productivity. By 2023, the startup secured $350 million in funding, achieving a valuation exceeding $1 billion. In late 2024, Luan transitioned to Amazon to lead their AI agents lab following Amazon’s acquisition of Adept’s founding team.
2. Anthropic
Siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei departed OpenAI in 2021 to establish Anthropic, a San Francisco-based company emphasizing AI safety. OpenAI co-founder John Schulman joined them in 2024, aiming to develop safe artificial general intelligence (AGI). Anthropic has emerged as a formidable competitor to OpenAI, raising a $30 billion Series G funding round, which valued the company at $380 billion. Speculations about an impending IPO are circulating, with expectations of a public listing within the year.
3. Applied Compute
Former OpenAI technical staffers Rhythm Garg, Linden Li, and Yash Patil launched Applied Compute in mid-2025. The startup assists enterprises in training and deploying custom AI agents. Benchmark led a $20 million funding round, valuing the company at $100 million.
4. Covariant
Pieter Abbeel, Peter Chen, and Rocky Duan, who served as research scientists at OpenAI between 2016 and 2017, founded Covariant. Based in Berkeley, California, Covariant develops foundational AI models for robotics. In 2024, Amazon integrated the trio and approximately 25% of Covariant’s staff into its operations, reflecting a broader trend of major tech companies enhancing their AI capabilities through strategic hires.
5. Cresta
Tim Shi, an early OpenAI team member focused on building safe AGI, left in 2017 to establish Cresta. This San Francisco-based AI contact center startup has attracted over $270 million in investments from prominent venture capital firms like Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz.
6. Daedalus
Jonas Schneider, who led OpenAI’s software engineering for robotics, co-founded Daedalus in 2019. The San Francisco-based company specializes in building advanced factories for precision components. In 2024, Daedalus raised a $21 million Series A funding round with backing from Khosla Ventures.
7. Eureka Labs
Andrej Karpathy, a founding member and research scientist at OpenAI, joined Tesla in 2017 to lead its autopilot program. In 2024, he founded Eureka Labs, a San Francisco-based startup developing AI teaching assistants aimed at revolutionizing education.
8. Thinking Machines Lab
Mira Murati, former CTO of OpenAI, launched Thinking Machines Lab in early 2025. The startup focuses on creating AI systems that are customizable and widely understood. Despite facing challenges, including the departure of co-founders Barret Zoph and Luke Metz back to OpenAI, the company continues to attract significant attention and investment.
9. Merge Labs
Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, co-founded Merge Labs, a brain-computer interface (BCI) startup, in 2025. Merge Labs aims to bridge biological and artificial intelligence to enhance human capabilities. OpenAI participated in a $250 million seed round, valuing the company at $850 million.
10. Supermaven
Jacob Jackson, an OpenAI intern until 2022, founded Supermaven, an AI coding assistant designed to support developer workflows. The startup has garnered investments from OpenAI and Perplexity co-founders, reflecting the growing interest in AI-driven developer tools.
11. AI21 Labs
Founded in 2017 by Amnon Shashua, Ori Goshen, and Yoav Shoham, AI21 Labs develops generative AI products similar to OpenAI’s GPT-4 and ChatGPT. The Tel Aviv-based startup has raised a total of $336 million, with a valuation of $1.4 billion.
12. Context.ai
Context.ai, established by former Googlers Henry Scott-Green and Alex Gamble, built evaluations and analytics for AI models. In 2025, OpenAI acquired the team behind Context.ai to enhance its AI evaluation capabilities.
13. Convogo
Convogo, a business software platform that automates leadership assessments and feedback reporting, was founded by Matt Cooper, Evan Cater, and Mike Gillett. In early 2026, OpenAI acquired the Convogo team to bolster its AI cloud efforts.
14. Pilot
Jeff Arnold, OpenAI’s former head of operations, co-founded Pilot in 2017. The San Francisco-based accounting startup focuses on providing accounting services for startups. In 2021, Pilot raised a $100 million Series C funding round at a $1.2 billion valuation, attracting investors like Jeff Bezos.
15. Adept AI Labs
David Luan, OpenAI’s former engineering VP, co-founded Adept AI Labs in 2021. The startup builds AI tools for employees and raised $350 million at a valuation exceeding $1 billion in 2023. Luan left in late 2024 to oversee Amazon’s AI agents lab after Amazon hired Adept’s founders.
16. Cresta
Tim Shi, an early OpenAI team member, founded Cresta in 2017. The San Francisco-based AI contact center startup has raised over $270 million from venture capital firms like Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz.
17. Daedalus
Jonas Schneider, who led OpenAI’s software engineering for robotics, co-founded Daedalus in 2019. The San Francisco-based startup builds advanced factories for precision components and raised a $21 million Series A funding round in 2024 with backing from Khosla Ventures.
18. Eureka Labs
Andrej Karpathy, a founding member and research scientist at OpenAI, founded Eureka Labs in 2024. The San Francisco-based startup is developing AI teaching assistants aimed at revolutionizing education.
These 18 startups exemplify the entrepreneurial spirit and innovative drive of OpenAI alumni. Their ventures span various industries, from AI safety and education to robotics and brain-computer interfaces, collectively contributing to the rapid advancement and diversification of artificial intelligence applications.
