Fidji Simo Steps Down from OpenAI for Health Reasons

Fidji Simo Leaves OpenAI Leadership for Health Reasons

Fidji Simo is stepping down from her role as the head of AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) at OpenAI and transitioning to a part-time advisory position, she announced on X. This decision follows her announcement in April regarding a medical leave due to a neuro-immune disease, shortly after she assumed the title of AGI lead. Previously, she served as the CEO of the company's applications.

At the same time, Chief Operating Officer Brad Lightcap has also left his position to focus on "special projects," and Chief Marketing Officer Kate Rouch has decided to step back to prioritize her health. Rouch had planned to return to a "more limited" role when her health allowed, Simo clarified at the time.

Simo's announcement in April marked the beginning of several changes within the leadership. During her medical leave, OpenAI President Greg Brockman took charge of products, including efforts related to OpenAI's super app. Other executives, such as Chief Scientist Jason Kwon, Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar, and Chief Commercial Officer Denise Dresser, also led the commercial side of the company.

However, about a month later, in mid-May, the situation evolved again with a company reorganization: Brockman officially took over product strategy and scaling, overseeing four major areas: core product and platform, critical industries, consumer sector (i.e., health, commerce, and personal finance), as well as core infrastructure, advertising, data science, and growth. In a memo reviewed by The Verge in May, Brockman wrote that this reorganization would help the company prioritize its goals regarding AI agents by combining its products to "invest in a unique agentic platform and merge ChatGPT and Codex into a unified agentic experience for all."

"Three months ago, I had to take a medical leave after a severe worsening of a chronic illness I have been living with for seven years," Simo wrote on X. "During this time, it became clear that the path to recovery would be much longer and more complex than I had anticipated — and that I needed to focus on it fully... It has been a destabilizing experience to spend my days helping to build the future while simultaneously navigating a debilitating illness that still has no cure."

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman expressed on X that he was "really sad about this" and grateful to Simo.