6 ms·

I think he's not as known in the outside world but it's really difficult to understate the amount of social capital sama has in the inner circles of Silicon Val

by jmerz 3y ago

I think he's not as known in the outside world but it's really difficult to understate the amount of social capital sama has in the inner circles of Silicon Valley. It sounds like he did a good job instilling loyalty as a CEO as well, but the SV thing means that the more connected someone at the company is to the SV ecosystem, the more likely they like him/want to be on his good side. This is kind of like the leadership of the executive branch switching parties. You're not going to say "why would the staff immediately quit?" Especially since this is corporate America, and sama can have another "country" next week.

steakscience 3y ago
Every SV CEO has a "Sam Altman saved my butt during crucial incident X" story
- Raptor22 3y ago
  What are some examples of these crucial incidents?
  - DonHopkins 3y ago
    It was a dark and stormy night off the coast of Maine. The winds were howling, the waves were monstrous, and there I was, stranded on my lobster fishing boat in the middle of a hurricane. The sea was a ferocious beast, tossing my vessel around like a toy. Just when all seemed lost, a figure appeared on the horizon. It was Sam Altman, riding a giant, neon-lit drone, battling the tempest with nothing but his bare hands and indomitable will. As he approached, lightning crackled around him, as if he was commanding the elements themselves. With a deft flick of his wrist, he sent a bolt of lightning to scare away a school of flying sharks that were drawn by the storm. Landing on the deck of my boat with the grace of a superhero, he surveyed the chaos. "Need a hand with those lobsters?" he quipped, as he single-handedly wrangled the crustaceans with an efficiency that would put any seasoned fisherman to shame. But Sam wasn't done yet. With a mere glance, he reprogrammed my malfunctioning GPS using his mind, charting a course to safety. As the boat rocked violently, a massive wave loomed over us, threatening to engulf everything. Sam, unfazed, simply turned to the wave and whispered a few unintelligible words. Incredibly, the wave halted in its tracks, parting around us like the Red Sea. He then casually conjured a gourmet meal from the lobsters, serving it with a fine wine that materialized out of thin air. Just as quickly as he had appeared, Sam mounted his drone once more. "Time to go innovate the weather," he said with a wink, before soaring off into the storm, leaving behind a trail of rainbows. As the skies cleared and the sea calmed, I realized that in the world of Silicon Valley CEOs, having a "Sam Altman saved my butt" story was more than just a rite of passage; it was a testament to the boundless, almost mythical capabilities of a man who defied the very laws of nature and business. And I, a humble lobster fisherman, had just become part of that legend.
    - 38321003thrw 3y ago
      You know Don, what touched me about this wonderful story of the charming visionary from SV —- thanks for sharing — is that his reach is as wide as his heart is big! Here you were, a mere fisherman somewhere off the coast of Maine, and here this hero of the age, this charming tower of visionary insight, coming over all the way from California to ‘shave your butt’. (Oops, that was a typo.)
      - DonHopkins 3y ago
        Oh he totally shaved my butt too, as the story grows on each telling, and he taught six lobsters to speak Esperanto as well!
- rightbyte 3y ago
  Like what?
- jacky2wong 3y ago
  can you share some stories? would love to learn how sam networked his way into sv
bmitc 3y ago
So it's a big deal because he has a cult of personality?
- natch 3y ago
  I wouldn’t call the entire YC community a cult of personality. And that’s just a subset of his network.
  - toomuchtodo 3y ago
    People see what they want to see.
  - bmitc 3y ago
    It's not all, but you see plenty of it here.
- belugacat 3y ago
  It’s a big deal because he’s extremely charismatic and well connected and that matters much, much more for a tech company’s success than some programmers like to think.
  - bmitc 3y ago
    I have watched him speak, and he doesn't seem charismatic at all. I remember hearing the same things about Sam Bankman-Fried and then going and watching his interviews and feeling the same. There is just a giant gap here where I simply do not get it, and I see no evidence that explains me not getting it is missing some key aspect of all this. This just seems like classic cargo cult, cult of personality, and following money and people who think they know best
    - djokkataja 3y ago
      > I have watched him speak, and he doesn't seem charismatic at all. Consider the relative charisma of the people around him, though.
    - 3y ago
basicoperation 3y ago
Do you mean “difficult to overstate”? “Difficult to understate” would mean he has little to no social capital.
underlipton 3y ago
>I think he's not as known in the outside world but it's really difficult to understate the amount of social capital sama has in the inner circles of Silicon Valley. This definitely sounds like someone the average person - including the average tech worker, exceptionally income-engorged as they may be - would want heading the, "Manhattan Project but potentially for inconceivably sophisticated social/economic/mind control et al." project. /s

by jmerz 3y ago

steakscience 3y ago

Every SV CEO has a "Sam Altman saved my butt during crucial incident X" story

Raptor22 3y ago
What are some examples of these crucial incidents?
- DonHopkins 3y ago
  It was a dark and stormy night off the coast of Maine. The winds were howling, the waves were monstrous, and there I was, stranded on my lobster fishing boat in the middle of a hurricane. The sea was a ferocious beast, tossing my vessel around like a toy. Just when all seemed lost, a figure appeared on the horizon. It was Sam Altman, riding a giant, neon-lit drone, battling the tempest with nothing but his bare hands and indomitable will. As he approached, lightning crackled around him, as if he was commanding the elements themselves. With a deft flick of his wrist, he sent a bolt of lightning to scare away a school of flying sharks that were drawn by the storm. Landing on the deck of my boat with the grace of a superhero, he surveyed the chaos. "Need a hand with those lobsters?" he quipped, as he single-handedly wrangled the crustaceans with an efficiency that would put any seasoned fisherman to shame. But Sam wasn't done yet. With a mere glance, he reprogrammed my malfunctioning GPS using his mind, charting a course to safety. As the boat rocked violently, a massive wave loomed over us, threatening to engulf everything. Sam, unfazed, simply turned to the wave and whispered a few unintelligible words. Incredibly, the wave halted in its tracks, parting around us like the Red Sea. He then casually conjured a gourmet meal from the lobsters, serving it with a fine wine that materialized out of thin air. Just as quickly as he had appeared, Sam mounted his drone once more. "Time to go innovate the weather," he said with a wink, before soaring off into the storm, leaving behind a trail of rainbows. As the skies cleared and the sea calmed, I realized that in the world of Silicon Valley CEOs, having a "Sam Altman saved my butt" story was more than just a rite of passage; it was a testament to the boundless, almost mythical capabilities of a man who defied the very laws of nature and business. And I, a humble lobster fisherman, had just become part of that legend.
  - 38321003thrw 3y ago
    You know Don, what touched me about this wonderful story of the charming visionary from SV —- thanks for sharing — is that his reach is as wide as his heart is big! Here you were, a mere fisherman somewhere off the coast of Maine, and here this hero of the age, this charming tower of visionary insight, coming over all the way from California to ‘shave your butt’. (Oops, that was a typo.)
    - DonHopkins 3y ago
      Oh he totally shaved my butt too, as the story grows on each telling, and he taught six lobsters to speak Esperanto as well!
rightbyte 3y ago
Like what?
jacky2wong 3y ago
can you share some stories? would love to learn how sam networked his way into sv

bmitc 3y ago

So it's a big deal because he has a cult of personality?

natch 3y ago
I wouldn’t call the entire YC community a cult of personality. And that’s just a subset of his network.
- toomuchtodo 3y ago
  People see what they want to see.
- bmitc 3y ago
  It's not all, but you see plenty of it here.
belugacat 3y ago
It’s a big deal because he’s extremely charismatic and well connected and that matters much, much more for a tech company’s success than some programmers like to think.
- bmitc 3y ago
  I have watched him speak, and he doesn't seem charismatic at all. I remember hearing the same things about Sam Bankman-Fried and then going and watching his interviews and feeling the same. There is just a giant gap here where I simply do not get it, and I see no evidence that explains me not getting it is missing some key aspect of all this. This just seems like classic cargo cult, cult of personality, and following money and people who think they know best
  - djokkataja 3y ago
    > I have watched him speak, and he doesn't seem charismatic at all. Consider the relative charisma of the people around him, though.
  - 3y ago

basicoperation 3y ago

Do you mean “difficult to overstate”? “Difficult to understate” would mean he has little to no social capital.

underlipton 3y ago

>I think he's not as known in the outside world but it's really difficult to understate the amount of social capital sama has in the inner circles of Silicon Valley. This definitely sounds like someone the average person - including the average tech worker, exceptionally income-engorged as they may be - would want heading the, "Manhattan Project but potentially for inconceivably sophisticated social/economic/mind control et al." project. /s