Sam Altman cites Paul Graham and Peter Thiel on investing lessons

OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman told listeners of the "Invest Like The Best" podcast that the most successful companies and investment opportunities are rarely the ones that appear popular. He said he learned this insight from Silicon Valley veterans Paul Graham and Peter Thiel, emphasizing the need to look beyond crowd‑favored choices.

Altman likened startup investing to being a flight instructor, stressing hands‑on guidance for founders. He recalled OpenAI’s early challenges securing compute after GPT‑4, comparing the effort to early‑stage fundraising where many say no but a few affirmative responses can make a venture succeed.