OpenAI executive Fidji Simo, widely described as the company’s No. 2 leader and its chief responsible for artificial general intelligence (AGI) deployment and product, is stepping down from her full-time role after an extended period of medical leave. Simo announced she will transition to a part-time advisory position. According to multiple reports, she took medical leave in April and says her recovery from a chronic condition has taken longer and become more complex than she expected.
Simo attributes her decision to the need to focus fully on her health. Reporting identifies her condition as Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), which she says she has lived with for years and experienced a severe worsening that led to the leave.
During her absence, OpenAI’s leadership shifted her responsibilities: product and related functions were covered by other senior executives, including President Greg Brockman, CFO Sarah Friar and Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon, with Brockman already handling product responsibilities. Her departure comes amid broader executive changes at OpenAI and as the company prepares for a potential initial public offering (IPO), which several outlets say it has confidentially filed for but without an announced timeline. Sam Altman expressed support and wished her a speedy recovery.
