OpenAI IPO 前人才流失引发“重大警讯”
英文标题：🔶 OpenAI talent exodus raises 'huge red flag' ahead of IPO
OpenAI 首席营收官 Denise Dresser、应用业务负责人 Fidji Simo 和长期高管 Brad Lightcap 相继离职，使公司在筹备 IPO 之际面临高层动荡。OpenAI 估值达 8520 亿美元，已于 6 月秘密提交 IPO 招股书，但尚未公布发行时间表。公司称企业业务在 Dresser 任内增至 200 万客户，且企业收入已超过以 ChatGPT 为主的消费者业务。投资者和行业人士担忧，高管流失、竞争加剧及公司长期治理不稳定，可能削弱 OpenAI 向资本市场展示稳定性的能力。
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中文
OpenAI 在去年 12 月从 Slack 挖来 Denise Dresser 担任首席营收官时，高级别管理人员 Fidji Simo 曾在一篇博客文章中表示，Dresser 的“经验将帮助我们让世界各地的企业都能以实用、可靠且易用的方式使用 AI”。
四个月后，随着运营负责人 Brad Lightcap 离开该职位、转而负责聚焦于“特别项目”的新岗位，Dresser 承担了更多职责。
如今，Dresser、Simo 和 Lightcap 都已离开。OpenAI 的 C-suite 高管层陷入混乱，而这家人工智能公司正试图证明其 8520 亿美元估值的合理性，并为预计将具有历史意义的首次公开募股做准备。Dresser 于周四突然宣布离职；两天前，Lightcap 表示，他将在 ChatGPT 开发商结束长达八年的任期，以“开启新事业”。
这场人才流失进一步加大了 CEO Sam Altman 和公司总裁、联合创始人 Greg Brockman 的压力：他们需要展现稳定性。但投资者已经开始担忧来自 Google 和 Anthropic 的竞争、更低成本开放权重模型的采用增加，以及 SpaceX 股票上市头两个月的剧烈波动。
OpenAI 已于 6 月秘密提交 IPO 招股书，但尚未给出未来发行的时间表。
AI 初创公司 SignAudit.AI 创始人 Kevin McCormick 周四在 X 平台的一篇帖子中写道：“在 IPO 前夕，OpenAI 高管离职是一个重大警讯。”他补充称，Dresser 在 OpenAI 工作不足一年便离职，可能意味着她放弃了一份高额薪酬方案。
McCormick 写道：“如果离职高管没有由下一家公司获得‘补偿到位’，那对 OpenAI 来说就是坏消息。”
OpenAI 的一名代表向 CNBC 提供了 Brockman 周四的声明。当日，公司任命前网络安全公司 Wiz COO Dali Rajic 为新任首席营收官。Google 今年早些时候以 320 亿美元收购了 Wiz。
Brockman 表示，Dresser 在“公司业务的形成期”领导了营收团队；Rajic 则“将把我们学到的经验转化为可重复执行的体系，随着我们构建完整系统，让 AI 能够广泛服务于个人和企业”。
Dresser 和 Lightcap 是近期一连串知名高管离职中的最新两位。去年辞去 Instacart CEO 职务加入 OpenAI 的 Simo 于 7 月表示，她将暂时离开，专注于从“慢性疾病严重恶化”中恢复。今年 4 月，包括 OpenAI 科学副总裁 Kevin Weil和营销主管 Kate Rouch 在内的另外四名高管离职。Rouch 离职是为了专注于癌症康复。
两名要求匿名、以便自由谈论此事的现有投资者表示，OpenAI 的财务支持者对 Dresser 的离职声明感到意外。他们称，混乱是 OpenAI 快节奏企业文化的一部分。
2024 年 10 月 29 日，前 OpenAI 高管 Denise Dresser 在旧金山 TechCrunch Disrupt 活动期间。
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Dresser 于去年 12 月加入 OpenAI，此前她曾在 Salesforce 担任高级职务逾十年，在企业市场建立了很强的声誉。她的任务是扩大 OpenAI 的企业业务部门——这是公司利润率较高的业务板块，也正直接与 Anthropic 竞争。
根据一则与 CNBC 分享的内部 Slack 消息，Brockman 周四告诉员工，7 月的年化营收运行率环比增长超过 20%，其中企业客户增长 32%。
Brockman 写道：“我们如今正处于一个拐点：下一代模型不仅将改变单项工作流的完成方式，也将改变创建和运营一家公司意味着什么。我们的机会，是将这些能力带给整个经济体中的企业。”
据一名出席人士透露，OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar 周五举行了一场投资者会议。该活动在本周高管震荡前就已安排，Brockman 与 Friar 一同向股东更新情况。
该人士称，Friar 强调了公司的企业业务增长，并表示企业业务目前创造的收入已超过由 ChatGPT 主导的消费者业务。Brockman 感谢 Dresser 的贡献以及她为企业业务打下的基础，同时也淡化了来自中国开源模型的竞争威胁。
OpenAI 周四表示，在 Dresser 的领导下，企业业务客户数增长至 200 万，较一年前翻倍。
Dresser 在结束上任最初 90 天之际，于 4 月对 CNBC 表示：“我从未见过这种程度的坚定信念，如此迅速且持续地在各行业中传播。”她当时称，企业业务占公司营收的 40%，并且“有望在 2026 年底前与消费者业务持平”。
在那次采访前几天，Dresser 被任命接管 Lightcap 的大量职责，这进一步提升了她在公司内部的地位。
多年的不稳定
据一位知情但无权谈论招聘流程的人士透露，Dresser 的继任者 Rajic 是经 Thrive 创始人 Josh Kushner 引荐给 OpenAI 的。Thrive 一直是 OpenAI 最重要的支持者之一。
两名前员工表示，OpenAI 长期以来都存在快速招聘、快速解雇的文化；两人均要求匿名，以便自由谈论此事。其中一人将该工作环境描述为“高压锅”。
高层不稳定对 OpenAI 或 Altman 而言都不是什么新鲜事。
2023 年，在公司董事会认定 Altman 与他们沟通时“并非一贯坦诚”后，Altman 被仓促解除 CEO 职务。数日后，投资者陷入恐慌、员工威胁集体离职，Altman 又重新回到掌舵位置。董事会当时的声明说明了这一决定。
Altman 短暂被罢免一事，一些 OpenAI 员工称之为“the blip（小插曲）”，此后一直如阴影般笼罩着他。
这一事件在 5 月备受关注的 Musk 诉 Altman 案审判中被反复提及。Elon Musk 因 OpenAI 的公司结构争议，于 2024 年起诉 OpenAI、Altman 和 Brockman。Musk 的律师利用 Altman 被解雇一事质疑其品格，指控他不可信赖。
Altman 在加州奥克兰联邦法院的证人席上作证称：“我并非试图欺骗董事会。”
2026 年 4 月 30 日，Elon Musk 抵达加州奥克兰联邦法院。Musk 早期投资 OpenAI 时相信它会是一家非营利组织，但如今正起诉 OpenAI 及其 CEO Sam Altman，称后者将 OpenAI 发展为营利性公司，从而欺骗了他。
Benjamin Fanjoy | Getty Images
Musk 的律师还就多名对 Altman 行为表达担忧的 OpenAI 高管向其施压。其中包括 Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei，后者此前曾担任 OpenAI 的研究负责人。Altman 表示，Amodei 曾指控他“很多事情”。
在审判中，Brockman 受到质询，内容涉及他本人作为领导者的声誉。Musk 的律师就一份由 OpenAI 联合创始人 Ilya Sutskever 编写的备忘录询问 Brockman；该备忘录列出了 Brockman 在工作表现和管理方面的问题。
一名律师要求 Brockman 确认，他的管理风格曾受到 OpenAI 员工的强烈批评。Brockman 回应道：“我当然不同意这种描述。”
经过三周证词审理后，一个咨询陪审团认为 Musk 提起诉讼的时间过晚，但 Musk 誓言将对该裁决提出上诉。
本周发生的事件并未改善 Altman 的处境。
Lightcap 离职后，Altman 在一篇 X 平台帖子中感谢了这位长期同事，并写道，他“很期待就下一步计划继续合作”。
但在 Dresser 宣布离职后，Altman 并未发布类似帖子。相反，Altman 周四在 X 上唯一的评论，涉及的是一个他通常更乐于讨论的话题：公司的 AI 模型。
针对 OpenAI 账号发布的一则帖子——该帖预告了新 GPT-5.6 模型的“Ultrafast mode（超高速模式）”，其速度“最高可达 14 倍”——Altman 写道：“/ultrafast。”
English / 原文
When OpenAI hired Denise Dresser from Slack to be its chief revenue officer in December, Fidji Simo, a top-ranking executive, said in a blog post that Dresser's "experience will help us make AI useful, reliable, and accessible for businesses everywhere."
Four months later, Dresser took on added responsibilities when operating chief Brad Lightcap left that position for a new role focused on "special projects."
Now, Dresser, Simo and Lightcap are all gone, leaving OpenAI's C-suite in chaos as the artificial intelligence company tries to justify its $852 billion valuation and gear up for what's expected to be a historic initial public offering. Dresser announced her sudden departure on Thursday, two days after Lightcap said he was ending an eight-year stint at the ChatGPT creator to "start something new."
The talent exodus puts even more pressure on CEO Sam Altman and fellow co-founder Greg Brockman, the company's president, to project stability at a time when investors are already growing concerned about competition from Google and Anthropic, increased adoption of lower-cost open-weight models, and SpaceX's volatile stock price in its first two months on the market.
OpenAI confidentially filed its IPO prospectus in June, but hasn't provided a timeline for a future offering.
"The executives leaving OpenAI ahead of their IPO is a huge red flag," Kevin McCormick, founder of AI startup SignAudit.AI, wrote in a post on X on Thursday. He added that Dresser likely walked away from a large pay package by leaving OpenAI after less than one year.
"If the executives leaving aren't being 'made whole' by the next company, it's bad news for OpenAI," McCormick wrote.
A representative for OpenAI pointed CNBC to Brockman's statement from Thursday, after the company named****Dali Rajic, former COO of cybersecurity company Wiz, which Google acquired for $32 billion earlier this year, as its new chief revenue officer.
Brockman said that Dresser led the revenue group through a "formative period for the business," and that Rajic "will turn what we've learned into repeatable execution as we build out the full system to make AI broadly useful for people and businesses."
Dresser and Lightcap are the latest in a recent string of big-name exits. Simo, who last year left her job as CEO of Instacart to join OpenAI, said in July that she was stepping away to focus on recovery after a "severe exacerbation of a chronic illness." Four other executives, including Kevin Weil, the vice president of OpenAI for Science, and marketing chief Kate Rouch, departed in April. Rouch left to focus on cancer recovery.
OpenAI's financial backers were surprised by Dresser's announcement, according to two current investors, who asked not to be named in order to speak freely on the matter. They said that chaos is part of OpenAI's fast-moving culture.
Ex-OpenAI exec Denise Dresser during TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco, Oct. 29, 2024.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Dresser was hired in December after establishing a strong reputation in the enterprise by spending more than a decade in senior roles at Salesforce. She was tasked with growing OpenAI's enterprise unit, a high-margin part of the business that's directly taking on Anthropic.
Brockman told employees on Thursday that run rate revenue increased more than 20% month over month in July, including 32% growth for business customers, according to an internal Slack message shared with CNBC.
"We're now at an inflection point: the next generation of models will change not just how individual workflows get done, but what it means to build and run a company," Brockman wrote. "Our opportunity is to bring those capabilities to businesses across the economy."
OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar held a meeting with investors on Friday, according to a person who was in attendance. The event had been planned prior to this week's executive shakeup, and Brockman joined Friar in updating shareholders.
Friar touted the company's growth in enterprise, which she said now accounts for more revenue than the ChatGPT-led consumer business. Brockman thanked Dresser for her contributions and for building the enterprise foundation, and also brushed off concerns surrounding the competitive threat of open-source models from China, the person said.
OpenAI said on Thursday that under Dresser's leadership, the enterprise business grew to 2 million customers, doubling from a year prior.
"I just have never seen this level of conviction spread so quickly and consistently within the industries," Dresser told CNBC in April, as she was wrapping up her first 90 days on the job. She said at the time that enterprise made up 40% of the company's revenue and was "on track to reach parity with consumer by the end of 2026."
Days before that interview, Dresser had been tapped to take over many of Lightcap's responsibilities, further raising her profile at the company.
Years of instability
Rajic, Dresser's successor, was introduced to OpenAI through Thrive founder Josh Kushner, according to a person with knowledge of the matter who was not authorized to speak on the recruiting process. Thrive has been one of OpenAI's most prominent backers.
OpenAI has long had a hire fast, fire fast culture, according to two former employees, who asked not to be named in order to speak freely on the matter. One of them described the environment as a pressure cooker.
Instability at the top is nothing new for OpenAI, or for Altman.
In 2023, Altman was hastily removed from his role as CEO after the company's board determined he was "not consistently candid in his communications" with them. Days later, with investors in a panic and employees threatening to leave en masse, Altman was restored at the helm.
Altman's brief ouster, which some OpenAI employees refer to as "the blip," has hung over him ever since.
The incident came up repeatedly during the high-profile Musk v. Altman trial in May. Lawyers representing Elon Musk, who sued OpenAI, Altman and Brockman in 2024 over a dispute about the company's corporate structure, used Altman's firing as a way to cast doubt on his character, accusing him of being untrustworthy.
"I was not trying to deceive the board," Altman testified from the witness stand in federal court in Oakland, California.
Elon Musk arrives at federal court in Oakland, Calif., on April 30, 2026. Elon Musk invested in OpenAI early on believing it would be a non-profit, but is now suing OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman for allegedly deceiving him by developing OpenAI into a for-profit company.
Benjamin Fanjoy | Getty Images
Musk's attorneys also pressed Altman about several OpenAI executives who raised concerns about his behavior. They included Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, who previously served as a research lead at OpenAI. Altman said Amodei had accused him of "many things."
At the trial, Brockman was grilled about his own reputation as a leader. Musk's attorneys asked him about a memo that was prepared by Ilya Sutskever, an OpenAI co-founder, highlighting issues with Brockman's performance and management.
One lawyer asked Brockman to confirm that his management style had been heavily criticized by OpenAI employees. Brockman responded, "I certainly disagree with that characterization."
After three weeks of testimony, an advisory jury said that Musk waited too long to bring his suit against OpenAI and its executives, though Musk vowed to appeal the ruling.
This week's events haven't helped Altman's cause.
Following Lightcap's departure, Altman thanked his longtime colleague in a post on X, and wrote that he was "excited to work together on what's next."
There was no such post after Dresser's announcement. Rather, Altman's only comment on X on Thursday had to do with a subject that he's generally happier to discuss: his company's AI models.
In response to a post from OpenAI's account about a preview to "Ultrafast mode," the new GPT-5.6 model "at up to 14x the speed," Altman wrote, “/ultrafast."
WATCH: OpenAI revenue chief Denise Dresser leaving, second major executive departure in days