Will Airbnb's Brian Chesky Get an OpenAI Board Seat?

19.11.2023 - 23:39 / skift.com / Brian Chesky / An Airbnb / Dennis Schaal / Sam Altman

From his posts and re-posts on X, it’s clear that Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky is highly supportive of Sam Altman, the ousted CEO of OpenAI, and now-former board Chairman Greg Brockman, and Chesky seems to be in-the-know about some of the maneuverings behind the scenes.

One knowledgeable source told Skift that Chesky could get appointed to a highly coveted OpenAI board seat if Altman indeed returns to OpenAI.

An Airbnb spokesperson had no comment on the issue.

The situation is very fluid with the OpenAi board said to be negotiating Altman’s return following an intense backlash, according to published reports. Some have referred to Altman’s sudden firing Friday as a board “coup” — a characterization that Chesky reposted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

It’s likely the scramble is on to fill board openings on a reconstituted board if Altman returns to the company, which launched ChatGPT a year ago, and quickly climbed to a $90 billion valuation. Tech journalist Kara Swisher reported that Altman would re-assume his position only if Microsoft, which invested billions in OpenAI and its generative AI software, and “some other big names” get board posts.

Chesky would be one such big name as a board appointee, and one who is tight with Altman, and shares much of OpenAI’s vision for the potential of the generative AI revolution.

The Information reported Sunday that the OpenAi board invited Altman and Brockman to headquarters today to discuss their return. Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon expressed “optimism” to staff about the duo’s return as well as that of three senior researchers who exited the company is support of Altman and Brockman on the day of Altman’s firing and Brockman’s resignation.

In a Skift interview in May, Chesky said generative AI would radically change the nature of Airbnb as early as 2024.

An Airbnb proxy statement in April did not list Chesky as having any outside board seats.

The current board has governance over OpenAi’s 501 (c) (3) charity, and the operating company subsidiary, OpenAI Global, and emphasizes OpenAI’s non-profit nature. OpenAI Global is a capped for-profit subsidiary, and some of the Altman-board tension may have been over the non-profit versus profit dynamic. The board, though, justified Altman’s ouster by saying he hadn’t been candid with the board.

Chesky said in May during that Skift interview that he is “very close” to Altman and “I talk to him every day.” The Airbnb CEO said Altman was one of his “first mentors” upon Chesky’s arrival in San Francisco in 2007. Altman was already at Y Combinator for a couple of years before Chesky and his co-founders applied to attend the startup accelerator in late 2008.

Chesky said he and Altman became even tighter — as did the