15 Noteworthy Startups Established by OpenAI Alumni
The Emergence of the OpenAI Mafia in Silicon Valley
OpenAI, the organization behind the transformative ChatGPT technology, has quickly ascended to a valuation of around $300 billion. This success has led to a wave of departures among its staff, many of whom are founding their own startups. Known informally as the “OpenAI mafia,” these former employees are venturing into various sectors of artificial intelligence (AI) and tech.
Startups Spawning from OpenAI
The excitement surrounding OpenAI has allowed several of its alumni to secure significant funding for their new ventures, even before launching products. Some notable startups emerging from this ecosystem include:
- Safe Superintelligence
- Thinking Machines Lab – Founder: Mira Murati
- Perplexity – Founder: Aravind Srinivas
- xAI – Founder: Kyle Kosic
- Stem AI – Founder: Emmett Shear
- Eureka Labs – Founder: Andrej Karpathy
- Pilot – Founder: Jeff Arnold
- Adept AI Labs – Founder: David Luan
- Cresta – Founder: Tim Shi
- Covariant – Founders: Pieter Abbeel, Peter Chen, Rocky Duan
- Living Carbon – Founder: Maddie Hall
- Prosper Robotics – Founder: Shariq Hashme
- Daedalus – Founder: Jonas Schneider
- Kindo – Founder: Margaret Jennings
– Founder: Ilya Sutskever
Noteworthy Startups and Their Founders
Anthropic – Dario Amodei, Daniela Amodei, and John Schulman
In 2021, siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei established Anthropic, focusing on AI safety. Their startup gained traction quickly, significantly raising its valuation to approximately $61.5 billion by March 2025. OpenAI co-founder John Schulman joined the team later, advocating for safe artificial general intelligence (AGI).
Safe Superintelligence – Ilya Sutskever
Co-founder of OpenAI, Ilya Sutskever, started Safe Superintelligence after parting ways with OpenAI in 2024. The startup aims to create a “safe superintelligence” and has raised about $2 billion to date, escalating its valuation to around $32 billion.
Thinking Machines Lab – Mira Murati
Former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati founded Thinking Machines Lab, which seeks to develop customizable AI platforms. In February 2025, the startup emerged from stealth mode and is reportedly in the process of raising a seed round as high as $2 billion.
Perplexity – Aravind Srinivas
After leaving OpenAI in 2022, Aravind Srinivas launched Perplexity. The AI search engine has attracted high-profile backers, such as Jeff Bezos, with its current valuation around $18 billion.
xAI – Kyle Kosic
Kyle Kosic co-founded xAI, an AI venture helmed by Elon Musk, that launched Grok, a rival to OpenAI’s chatbot. The startup made headlines when it acquired X, formerly Twitter, giving the newly formed company a valuation of $113 billion.
Stem AI – Emmett Shear
Emmett Shear, a former Twitch CEO and temporary CEO of OpenAI in 2023, is developing Stem AI. Though details are limited, the startup has begun attracting investments from notable firms like Andreessen Horowitz.
Eureka Labs – Andrej Karpathy
Andrej Karpathy founded Eureka Labs after leaving Tesla in 2024. The startup focuses on creating AI teaching assistants, aiming to revolutionize education through technology.
Pilot – Jeff Arnold
Jeff Arnold co-founded Pilot, an accounting service for startups, after a short tenure at OpenAI. The company has effectively raised significant funds and has grown to a billion-dollar valuation.
Adept AI Labs – David Luan
David Luan co-founded Adept AI Labs to create AI tools designed to enhance worker productivity. Following a significant funding round in 2023, he later joined Amazon to head their AI agents lab.
Cresta – Tim Shi
Tim Shi is the co-founder of Cresta, which provides AI solutions for contact centers and has successfully raised substantial venture capital, focusing on integrating AI into customer support roles.
Covariant – Pieter Abbeel, Peter Chen, and Rocky Duan
The founders of Covariant were all previously associated with OpenAI. The startup’s mission focuses on developing foundational AI models for robotics, and it has recently attracted attention through a partnership with Amazon.
Living Carbon – Maddie Hall
Maddie Hall’s startup, Living Carbon, seeks to engineer plants capable of absorbing more carbon dioxide, contributing to climate change mitigation efforts.
Prosper Robotics – Shariq Hashme
Shariq Hashme co-founded Prosper Robotics, creating robots intended to assist with household chores, joining a growing interest in household automation.
Daedalus – Jonas Schneider
Jonas Schneider started Daedalus, which designs advanced manufacturing facilities with precision components as its focus.
Kindo – Margaret Jennings
Margaret Jennings set up Kindo, a firm marketing itself as an AI chatbot for enterprises, and is in an ongoing quest for further funding to enhance enterprise communications.
