Revelation of Disorder and Confidentiality within OpenAI's Core, as Told by a Senior Engineer
**OpenAI's Chaotic, Bottom-Up Meritocracy Fosters AI Innovation**
OpenAI, one of the most unpredictable and powerful forces in technology, has built a reputation for its unique work culture and rapid innovation. This approach has been instrumental in the development of groundbreaking AI tools such as ChatGPT and Codex.
The company's leadership is primarily based on merit, with leaders chosen for their ability to generate and implement good ideas rather than their presentation or political skills. This meritocratic approach ensures that the best ideas are prioritised, leading to a culture that encourages individual initiative and rapid decision-making.
Employees at OpenAI are empowered to take action without needing permission, allowing small teams to form around promising ideas quickly. This environment fosters numerous parallel efforts, such as multiple prototypes of the Codex product, which were supported as long as they showed promise.
The culture encourages quick action and experimentation, leading to rapid development and testing of ideas. This bias towards action is crucial in driving innovation and allowing teams to quickly converge on powerful concepts. Researchers at OpenAI are treated as mini-executives, meaning they have the autonomy to pursue their own projects and interests. This autonomy encourages deep exploration into specific problems, particularly those that might be overlooked elsewhere.
The development of groundbreaking tools like ChatGPT and Codex is a testament to this approach. For instance, Codex was developed through multiple prototypes by small, autonomous teams that were free to experiment and innovate without bureaucracy. This diversity of ideas, even if unconventional or not initially mainstream, is crucial for the development of advanced AI tools.
OpenAI's work environment thrives on ambiguity, speed, and secrecy, with critical decisions, technical documentation, debates, and leadership directives occurring in fast-moving, ephemeral Slack chat threads. Information within the company is strictly compartmentalized, with engineers learning about new products from the media before internal announcements. Despite this, employees genuinely care about doing the right thing and have a strong focus on AI safety, particularly addressing immediate, practical risks.
OpenAI had over 1,000 employees when Calvin French-Owen joined in May 2024 and over 3,000 employees when he left in June 2025. During his tenure, he witnessed the launch of the groundbreaking Codex product in just seven weeks. French-Owen described the environment at OpenAI as empowering individual researchers, who are treated like mini-executives. He also noted that the fast-moving, improvisational nature of OpenAI's operations can lead to redundancy and inefficiencies.
In conclusion, OpenAI's chaotic, bottom-up meritocracy fosters an environment where individual initiative and rapid decision-making are valued, leading to the development of revolutionary AI technologies like ChatGPT and Codex. The company's main software system, sa-server, is a monolithic codebase that can be difficult to manage and slow to update. Despite this, the company's success demonstrates that a culture that values speed and individual initiative can lead to groundbreaking advancements in AI technology.
[1] This information is not explicitly stated in the bullet points, but it can be inferred from the context.
- The development of revolutionary AI technologies like ChatGPT and Codex is a testament to OpenAI's chaotic, bottom-up meritocracy, where individuals are empowered to take action and innovate without bureaucracy.
- OpenAI's approach to technology and artificial intelligence is reflected in various aspects of its work culture, such as its focus on empowering employees, fostering individual initiative, and rapid decision-making.
- The tech industry, particularly businesses focused on finance and finance tech, could benefit from adopting similar practices to encourage innovation and foster a culture that values speed and individual initiative.
- Gizmodo may find it interesting to explore how other tech companies apply OpenAI's approach to their own AI projects, potentially driving further advancements in the field of artificial intelligence.
