Senior OpenAI executive Brad Lightcap to leave for new venture

Brad Lightcap, a longtime OpenAI executive, said Tuesday that he was leaving the company after eight years to start a new venture, the latest in a string of departures from the artificial intelligence startup.

Lightcap offered little detail about the new venture. He joined OpenAI in 2018 and had become its chief financial officer before being appointed chief operating officer in 2022. He held that job until April, when he moved into a new role focused on “special projects.”

“It is bittersweet to share that I’ll be moving on from OpenAI to start something new,” he wrote in a note to employees that he also posted on social media.

His exit follows a wave of recent turnover in OpenAI’s upper ranks. Fidji Simo, who served as second in command to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, stepped down last month over health issues. Kate Rouch, the chief marketing officer, said she was stepping down in April to focus on cancer recovery. Kevin Weil, who oversaw science research after serving as chief product officer, left the company the same month.