OpenAI is experiencing a wave of resignations, 3 executives have quit

OpenAI, the startup behind ChatGPT, is experiencing a wave of departures. The generative AI giant has lost three senior executives within 24 hours. On the same day, Kevin Weil, Chief Product Officer, Bill Peebles, head of the Sora generator, and the Chief Technical Officer responsible for professional offerings, Srinivas Narayanan, resigned.

Also read: Inspired by Anthropic, OpenAI wants to launch a ChatGPT that tracks security flaws

Two of the three departures linked to OpenAI's new strategy

The departures of Kevin Weil and Bill Peebles are directly linked to the ongoing internal restructuring at OpenAI. Kevin Weil, who oversaw the "OpenAI for Science" division, saw his team dispersed across several research teams. In his farewell message posted on X, Kevin Weil states that the division, launched last October to accelerate scientific research with the help of AI, has been « decentralized ». Before the restructuring, it had developed an internal platform called Prism, dedicated to researchers in biology, chemistry, and mathematics.

Today is my last day at OpenAI, as OpenAI for Science is being decentralized into other research teams. It’s been a mind-expanding two years, from Chief Product Officer to joining the research team and starting OpenAI for Science. Accelerating science will be one of the most…

— Kevin Weil 🇺🇸 (@kevinweil) April 17, 2026

On Bill Peebles' side, his departure coincides with the closure of Sora 2, the social network based on a video generator with generative AI. Last month, OpenAI decided to shut down the platform, whose costs were deemed too high. On X, the framework explains having « decided to leave OpenAI », assuring that « building Sora with you all, from A to Z, has been an honor and an unforgettable adventure ». In contrast to Kevin Weil, the leader does not seem to be leaving the startup with bitterness. The third departure, that of Srinivas Narayanan, appears to be motivated by personal reasons. He explains having the intention to take care of his parents before deciding on the next step in his professional life.

I’ve decided to leave OpenAI. Below is the note I shared with my team.

Building Sora zero-to-one with you all has been the honor and adventure of a lifetime.

As this team knows well, one of the best parts of working on video is that you can see the scaling behavior with your… pic.twitter.com/mb4NggEAVN

— Bill Peebles (@billpeeb) April 17, 2026

These three resignations come as OpenAI has restructured completely to deal with the competition from Anthropic, which develops Claude. Sam Altman's startup, which aims for an IPO in the near future, intends to focus on solutions aimed at productivity and the corporate world.

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