President of OpenAI i co-founder Greg Brockman doesn’t consider himself a politician, which is surprising since he was one of President Trump’s largest individual donors in 2025.
Last September, Greg and his wife Anna Brockman donated $25 million to MAGA Inc, a super PAC supporting President Trump. The couple also gave 25 million dollars to the bipartisan artificial intelligence super PAC, Leading the Future, which says it plans to oppose politicians who threaten “Americans’ ability to benefit from artificial intelligence.” The Brockmans have pledged to donate an additional $25 million to Leading the Future in 2026, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter.
According to Brockman, these political contributions advance OpenAI’s founding mission: to develop high-performance artificial intelligence systems and distribute the benefits to all of humanity.
“In my opinion, this mission is bigger than companies, bigger than corporate structures,” he says in an interview for WIRED. “We are embarking on a journey to develop this technology, which will be the most impactful thing humanity has ever created. The most important thing is to get it right and ensure it benefits everyone.”
Brockman’s emergence as a major political donor marks a keen departure for the tech leader, who until recently had no significant political spending history. The largest donation Brockman had previously made was a $5,400 gift to Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign.
Brockman says he is increasing his political spending in part because public opinion has turned against artificial intelligence. Recent questionnaire of the Pew Research Center suggests that Americans are “more concerned than excited about the increased use of artificial intelligence in everyday life.” For Brockman, this means that supporting pro-AI politicians is becoming increasingly vital.
“There are a small number of politicians who, even though they realize it’s not the most popular thing to do, actually express their opinion, [AI] is important for the country,” he says. “I think supporting them is really important. I believe this technology is important for global communities. I think it’s important for America. I think it’s important for the world. I will do everything in my power to support this technology for the benefit of everyone. In that sense, maybe supporting the team is greater than the number of people I happen to work with. It’s truly team humanity.”
Despite its stated purpose, Brockman’s donations may contribute to some people’s negative attitudes toward artificial intelligence. Exit GPTa movement calling on people to unsubscribe from ChatGPT over Brockman’s donation to Trump is gaining traction, with more than 700,000 people sharing the petition online or signing the pledge. On Sunday, actor Mark Ruffalo announced on Instagram he joined the movement.
His donations also caused some consternation within OpenAI. While many employees understand that the company must work with government officials to develop cutting-edge technology, there is a feeling that Brockman is doing more than absolutely necessary to advance OpenAI’s business. “Personally, I think Greg’s political contributions probably exceed that amount,” says one OpenAI researcher, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“I don’t think there’s ever a decision that everyone at OpenAI agrees on,” Brockman says when I ask what his team thinks about donations. “Even when there were 10 of us. We have always been a truth-seeking culture. We have this scientific mission of discovery, and reality sort of doesn’t care about your own opinion. It cares about what is true.”
OpenAI maintains that the Brockmans’ donations are strictly personal and do not reflect company policy. “The Brockmans’ donation reflects their focus on artificial intelligence as a key issue for the country and the world during this presidency,” a company spokesman said in a statement. “They bring a unique perspective on technology and are particularly committed to this issue.”