Sam Altman Says He Was ‘Neurochemically Hacked’ by Birth of First Kid

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, says he was “neurochemically hacked” by the birth of his first child — and he’s all for it.

Altman, whose company developed ChatGPT, announced the birth of his son on Feb. 22. At the time, the 40-year-old entrepreneur said his son was “doing well” and that it was “really nice” to take care of his firstborn.

In a newly released interview with Bloomberg’s Emily Chang, Altman said that within the first hour of his son’s life he “felt this neurochemical change” in himself.

Altman, who admitted that his experience is one many new parents share, said that it “happened so fast” and “totally rewired all of my priorities.”

“’Oh I get to observe this! I am being neurochemically hacked,’ ” he recalled saying to himself, noting that he realized that “everything is going to be different now” — but in a great way.

“It is the best most amazing thing ever,” he said.

He also admitted that “a lot of people have said I’m happier having a kid” and believe he will “make better decisions” regarding OpenAI and ChatGPT when it comes to “humanity as a whole.”

“I wanted to really get it right before,” Altman explained. “I wanted to do the best I could. I still really want to now. Yes, it somehow feels like it’s different, but I can’t articulate how.”

Altman married partner Oliver Mulherin, a software engineer, in 2024.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Altman has been CEO of OpenAi since 2019, the same year he left Y Combinator, where he served as president, according to Forbes. 

In 2005, Altman dropped out of Stamford and later founded the social mapping company Loopt, which he sold in 2012 for $43 million.

Altman was briefly fired from OpenAI in 2023, but rehired the same year. His current net worth is estimated at $1.7 billion.