Greg Brockman: Inside the 72 Hours That Almost Killed OpenAI

# Greg Brockman: Inside the 72 Hours That Almost Killed OpenAI Source: [https://fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast/greg-brockman/](https://fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast/greg-brockman/) [The Knowledge Project Podcast](https://fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast/) The AI race, the future of AGI, and the inside story of OpenAI\. Greg Brockman is the co\-founder and President of OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT and GPT\-5\. He was the first engineer at Stripe before leaving in 2015 to help start OpenAI\. In this rare conversation, Greg goes inside the moments that built, and nearly broke, the most important AI company in the world\. ### Featured clips  Breakthrough Moments at OpenAI  Sam Altman's Firing  Is AI Going Parabolic?  Why ChatGPT No Longer Shows Reasoning  AI and Job Loss **Available Now:[YouTube](https://youtu.be/6JoUcQ1qmAc)\|**[Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/episode/4klBY8VmjDBOGupue4aQyL)****\|**[Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/greg-brockman-inside-the-72-hours-that-almost-killed-openai/id990149481?i=1000763023401)\|[Transcript](https://fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast-transcripts/greg-brockman/)** Greg explains how the original Napa offsite produced the three\-step technical plan OpenAI has followed for a decade and the real reason OpenAI had to abandon its pure nonprofit structure\. He then walks through the 72 hours after Sam Altman was fired: where he was when he got the board call, why he quit the same day, how the “Phoenix” backup company was designed at Sam’s house the next morning, and the moment Ilya Sutskever’s tweet changed everything\. From there, the conversation turns forward: whether we’re in a global AI race, how much of OpenAI’s own code is now written by AI \(“it’s hard to know what percent is*not*“\), why OpenAI stopped showing reasoning traces, what a compute\-constrained world means for who gets access to AGI, and Greg’s answer to the question everyone is really asking:*What happens to your job?* \+ Check out the[Granola Notes\.](https://notes.granola.ai/t/2c35c84f-6eb4-497a-8419-294d92141721-009c2hma) ## Transcript Get transcripts, early access, ad\-free episodes, and so much more\. Learn more or sign up now\. Already a member? Head over to the[Members Only area](https://fs.blog/prime/)to access transcripts and other Member Only content\. --- ## More Episodes [](https://fs.blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/tkp-phone.png) ## The Knowledge Project A podcast about mastering the best of what other people have already figured out\. The Knowledge Project focuses on insights and lessons that never expire\. You’ll walk away from every episode with actionable insights that help you get better results and live a more meaningful life\. ## Never miss an episode ## A podcast about mastering the best of what other people have already figured out\.