Prime Highlights:
Adebayo Ogunlesi, senior managing director at BlackRock, joins OpenAI’s board of directors.
Ogunlesi’s appointment aligns with OpenAI’s move toward a for-profit structure, marking another shift since CEO Sam Altman’s reinstatement.
OpenAI was valued at $157 billion in 2024, spurred by its leadership in generative AI technology.
Key Background:
OpenAI announced the addition of Adebayo Ogunlesi to its board of directors on January 14, 2025. Ogunlesi, a senior managing director at BlackRock, brings substantial expertise in infrastructure investing and corporate governance. He is also a founding partner of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), which was acquired by BlackRock in 2024 for $12 billion.
Before co-founding GIP in 2006, Ogunlesi spent over two decades at Credit Suisse. In a statement, he emphasized the role of AI in shaping the future, noting that strategic investment in infrastructure is vital to realizing AI’s full potential. Ogunlesi’s appointment underscores OpenAI’s ongoing shift toward a for-profit structure, a transition that has gained momentum in recent months.
This latest move is part of OpenAI’s broader transformation, which includes the creation of a public benefit corporation (PBC). This change, announced in December 2024, will allow OpenAI to operate more like a high-growth startup, enabling it to pursue commercial opportunities while maintaining its nonprofit arm for charitable initiatives in healthcare, education, and science.
Ogunlesi’s addition to the board follows significant changes within OpenAI’s leadership since late 2023. CEO Sam Altman’s brief ouster and subsequent reinstatement led to a nearly complete overhaul of the board. Prominent new members include Bret Taylor, former co-CEO of Salesforce, and Larry Summers, the former U.S. Treasury Secretary. Other recent additions include Fidji Simo, CEO of Instacart, and Dr. Sue Desmond-Hellmann, former CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
OpenAI’s for-profit shift has been accompanied by growing financial success, with the company being valued at $157 billion in 2024. The company’s rapid advancements in generative AI and its innovative products have helped solidify its position as a leader in the field. In addition to his role at OpenAI, Ogunlesi serves on the boards of BlackRock, Topgolf Callaway Brands, Kosmos Energy Holdings, and Terminal Investment Ltd.
