Greg Brockman and the new power at OpenAI ahead of the IPO

The Timeline of a Quiet Rise

Greg Brockman has been a cofounder of OpenAI since 2015. Over the years he has held key technical and operational roles. His real influence, however, has grown most in the past year and a half.

2025 was a year of systemic crisis for OpenAI. The company faced a jury trial against Elon Musk, a former founding partner. Apple also filed a lawsuit alleging trade secret violations. Finally, a model that had not yet been released was caught up in a security incident that shook the industry.

In this context, a number of key figures left the organization. The void left by these executives opened the door to a redistribution of internal power. Brockman gradually filled that space, strengthening his role as president and operational point of reference.

According to The Verge, Brockman is described internally as an "engineering workhorse" who can drive the building of scalable systems. His rise, then, is not just political: it rests on a solid technical foundation.

Winners, Losers and Those Watching

Every corporate power transition follows clear dynamics. First, you need to identify who is gaining ground and who is losing it.

Brockman emerges as the main beneficiary of this phase. His closeness to the technical side and his continuity with OpenAI's founding story make him a figure of internal legitimacy. Likewise, the engineering teams seem strengthened by a more product-focused leadership.

By contrast, those more focused on external governance and institutional communication seem to have lost influence. The departures of high-profile executives point to unresolved tension between commercial vision and stated mission. Even so, OpenAI holds a dominant position in the market for advanced language models.

Outside observers — investors, enterprise partners, regulators — are in wait-and-see mode. Preparing for an IPO demands transparency and perceived stability. Power concentrated in a single person can be read as decision-making efficiency or as a governance risk, depending on where you stand.

SHM Studio's Take: AI Governance as a Strategic Variable

At SHM Studio, we work every day with Italian companies that integrate AI tools into their processes. For them, the governance structure of a vendor like OpenAI is no minor detail.

When an organization builds workflows on OpenAI APIs, or adopts solutions based on GPT-4o and its successors, it is implicitly betting on the stability of that platform. As a result, leadership changes affect roadmaps, usage policies, pricing and service continuity.

There are three dimensions to consider:

• Technical continuity: Brockman has a track record of engineering execution. This suggests a focus on product in the short term.
• Concentration risk: Centralized leadership reduces internal checks and balances. Diverse governance leads to more robust decisions in high-risk contexts.
• IPO pressure: Public markets demand structured accountability. So the pre-IPO phase may push toward formalizing roles rather than concentrating power further.

For Italian SMEs weighing investments in AI solutions, this scenario calls for caution about relying on a single provider.

Work in Progress: The IPO and a Redefined Model

OpenAI is approaching its IPO in a moment of deep transformation. Its conversion from nonprofit to for-profit entity is still being settled on the legal and regulatory front. Meanwhile, competitive pressure from Anthropic, Google DeepMind and Meta AI shows no sign of easing.

In this context, Brockman represents a bet on continuity. He knows the organization from the inside, he has lived through the crises of recent years and he retains technical credibility. The open question, however, is whether he can handle the complexity of a publicly traded company.

OpenAI will need to prove not only technological strength but also organizational maturity. The two don't always go together during periods of rapid transition.

For companies that follow the industry closely, our analyses on the SHM Studio blog offer ongoing updates on these topics.

Operational Implications for Companies Using OpenAI

Brockman's concentration of power has practical consequences for the marketing and digital teams of Italian companies. Here's what to monitor:

• Model roadmap: Technical leadership tends to prioritize product progress. Expect new models to be released faster. That can be an advantage, but it requires flexibility in updating your workflows.
• Usage policies: Governance changes often show up in the terms of use. It's wise to keep a close eye on OpenAI's official communications.
• Provider diversification: Relying on a single AI vendor is a manageable but real risk. As you would with cloud providers, a multi-model strategy reduces your exposure.
• Integration with existing tools: If you've built automations on OpenAI APIs, you need to assess how robust those integrations will be over the medium term.

If you manage digital marketing strategies with AI components, vendor stability is a project variable, not an implicit assumption.

Next Moves: What to Watch in the Next 12-18 Months

The period from now through the end of 2027 will be decisive for OpenAI. Several events will define the company's trajectory and, in turn, that of the entire AI ecosystem.

First, the IPO itself. The expected valuation and market conditions will determine how much room management has to invest in research and infrastructure. The makeup of the post-IPO board will also be a clear signal of where governance is heading.

Second, the resolution of the ongoing legal disputes. The cases with Musk and Apple are not just legal matters: they shape OpenAI's public reputation at a time when trust is a competitive asset.

Finally, how competitors respond. Anthropic has recently strengthened its position with significant investments. Google DeepMind keeps integrating AI into mass-market products. OpenAI will need to keep up a fast pace of innovation even while going through an organizational transition.

If you're building digital strategies on these technologies, we recommend following these developments as closely as you follow your performance metrics. Our SEO, web development and advertising teams already factor these assessments into planning with clients.

A Note on Method: How to Read Power Shifts at Big Tech

Leadership changes at big tech companies follow recognizable patterns. So it helps to have a framework for reading them, rather than reacting case by case.

When a cofounder consolidates power during a crisis, there are two typical scenarios. In the first, the leader brings stability and a long-term vision, acting as an anchor in the storm. In the second, concentrated power speeds up cultural drift that is already there and weakens the company's ability to self-correct.

In Brockman's case, the available evidence points to the first scenario. Still, the proof will come in practice: in decisions about models, in safety policies, and in the makeup of the leadership team that forms around him.

If you work in content strategy and B2B communication, understanding these dynamics helps you build stronger narratives around AI adoption in business. It's not just about technology. It's about institutional trust.

To dig deeper into these topics or explore how to integrate AI tools into your digital strategy, you can contact the SHM Studio team for an initial consultation.