OpenAI’s acquisition of popular tech talk show TBPN has left many in Silicon Valley stunned — but not speechless.
Sam Altman’s AI behemoth has made a slew of big moves this year, from introducing ads on ChatGPT to shutting down Sora, its AI video app.
While OpenAI is no stranger to dealmaking, its decision to buy the livestream show hosted by Jordi Hays and John Coogan caught many off guard.
“This is not an April Fool’s joke; that was yesterday,” Coogan said on Thursday’s show.
Here’s what some top voices in the tech and media worlds are saying about OpenAI’s acquisition of TBPN.
Peter Kafka, chief correspondent at Business Insider
Peter Kafka wrote that “OpenAI bought TBPN because it can,” noting the tech talk show is a safe bet since it likely won’t “generate regulatory, political, or brand blowback.”
And for Coogan and Hays, TBPN’s millennial cofounders, the OpenAI deal offered an opportunity to cash out rather than roll the dice on building a durable ad business as a media startup.
“Coogan and Hays sold now, just as they were starting to build a real advertising business, because building a real advertising business is hard. And selling to OpenAI means they never have to worry about it again,” Kafka wrote.
Jason Yanowitz, cofounder of Blockworks
Crypto entrepreneur Jason Yanowitz called OpenAI’s TBPN deal a “smart acquisition.”
“As tech gets easier to build with AI, distribution and brand will become king,” said Yanowitz, who helped start data firm Blockworks, in an X post.
Austin Rief, cofounder of Morning Brew
Buying TBPN is a low-risk way for Altman to win fans in Silicon Valley and beyond, said Austin Rief, who helped start newsletter company Morning Brew, which shares a parent with Business Insider.
“Giving up .01% of your company to hopefully have your CEO not become the most hated man alive seems like the greatest trade of all time,” Rief wrote on X.
Erik Torenberg, partner at A16z
Erik Torenberg of venture capital giant Andreessen Horowitz also sees OpenAI’s TBPN deal as a marketing plan.
“The future of marketing is buying creators/media properties,” Torenberg wrote on X.
Torenberg’s podcast network, Turpentine, was acquired by A16z last April, and he now runs the firm’s media initiative.
Colin Rosenblum and Samir Chaudry, creator-focused YouTubers
The creator economy duo, Colin and Samir, sounded off on the OpenAI-TBPN tie-up on X, congratulating TBPN on the sale and remarking that Altman’s company has a shiny new toy.
“OpenAI just bought a Rolex,” the Colin and Samir X page said.
To Colin and Samir, a Rolex isn’t merely a fancy watch — it’s a status symbol that sends a signal about someone’s identity, not just their fashion sense.
“What Rolex is to watches, TBPN is becoming for creator-led media,” the Colin and Samir X page said in late January.
Eric Newcomer, founder of Newcomer
Eric Newcomer, who authors an eponymous newsletter about tech and venture capital, wrote on X that he was “trying to get my head around this one,” in reference to OpenAI’s TBPN acquisition.
“Isn’t being a neutral ground a key part of the value of the show for watchers?” Newcomer wrote, adding a rhetorical question: “Are they mostly getting bought for strategic know-how or for the show itself.”
Newcomer noted that OpenAI is planning to make its public market debut later this year, which could complicate what Hays and Coogan say.
“Aren’t they going to have to be super paranoid about any analysis they give?” Newcomer wondered.
The newsletter author then added a review of TBPN’s Thursday livestream, saying that the “vibes are a little off,” and that the show “feels a little defensive.”
Neil Cybart, tech analyst and founder of Above Avalon
Apple and tech analyst Neil Cybart is also skeptical of the logic behind OpenAI’s decision to buy TBPN.
“There is no reason for OpenAI to buy a tech podcast,” Cybart wrote on X. He added that this deal appears to be about “Sam Altman wanting the TBPN crew to reimagine OpenAI marketing – think appealing to younger developers and tinkers – in a bid to steal mindshare from Big Tech.”
And while TBPN hosts Hays and Coogan may have cashed out from the deal, Cybart said they risk losing their independence and access.
“TBPN will be left with a guest list filled with OpenAI friends, family, and supporters,” Cybart wrote. (OpenAI said TBPN would remain editorially independent.)
For TBPN, teaming up with OpenAI may still have been a smart move, Cybart wrote, given that “viewership numbers remained niche” despite the positive press the talk show got.
“In summary, a weird transaction likely greased by OpenAI cash / stock and influenced by a deteriorating outlook for a truly indie podcast with a rapidly growing expense load,” Cybart wrote.
