Important Issues Of Leadership, Trust and Culture Behind Big AI Companies

Important Issues Of Leadership, Trust and Culture Behind Big AI Companies

From Josh Bersin by Josh Bersin

April 17, 2026 · 20 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the impact of leadership, culture, and ethics in AI companies, particularly in light of recent events involving Sam Altman and the rapid growth of OpenAI and Anthropic.

This week, as Ronan Farrow’s expose on Sam Altman was published, I want to sensitize you to the fact that AI companies are run by humans. And this means that what we buy and how it works is very dependent on leadership, culture, values, ethics, and the personal motivations of these young, ambitious executives. Obviously this is nothing new, but in this case OpenAI and Anthropic are by far the fastest growing businesses ever created on planet earth. So their ability to steer, direct, and prioritize their investments makes a huge difference in how they meet the needs we have in our companies. I have learned over the years that great, long-lasting tech companies are among the most tumultuous businesses to lead. Not only are the personal economic payoffs huge (I live in a community with lots of Anthropic millionaires) but they are brutally competitive and the cost of a missed opportunity can sometimes be fatal. In this case, I admire all the people in this space but as the AI vendors play larger roles in our lives and careers, we have to think much harder about their leadership and culture. As you’ll hear, many others (analysts, stock market, politicians) are also working…

People in this episode

Host: Josh Bersin

Topics covered

  • leadership
  • trust
  • culture
  • AI companies
  • business ethics

Keywords

  • AI leadership
  • business culture
  • trust in technology
  • ethics in AI
  • Ronan Farrow

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: OpenAI, Anthropic

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