OpenAI builds artificial intelligence. It does not buy talk shows. Until now.
The company announced April 2 that it has acquired TBPN, the Technology Business Programming Network, a daily live tech and business show that has become something of a cult phenomenon in Silicon Valley, per OpenAI. It is the company’s first acquisition of a media company. Deal terms were not disclosed.
The New York Times once described TBPN as “Silicon Valley’s newest obsession,” and as “SportsCenter for the terminally online M.B.A. grad,” per The Wrap. The show streams three hours a day, weekdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. PT, on YouTube, X, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, LinkedIn, Substack, and Instagram.
What TBPN actually is
TBPN was launched by former tech founders John Coogan and Jordi Hays in October 2024 and began its daily livestream format in March 2025. The show covers tech, business, AI, and defense, with guests ranging from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella to Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff. Sam Altman has appeared multiple times.
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The show has 11 employees and averages around 70,000 viewers per episode across platforms, per Variety. Despite its relatively small footprint, TBPN generated approximately $5 million in advertising revenue in 2025 and was profitable with no outside investors, per Axios citing the Wall Street Journal. It was on track to exceed $30 million in revenue in 2026, per CNBC.
TBPN attracted sponsorships from fintech companies Ramp and Plaid, Google’s Gemini, and holds a partnership with the New York Stock Exchange.
Why OpenAI bought a talk show
The acquisition is not about content. It is about communications, per OpenAI’s own announcement.
Fidji Simo, OpenAI’s CEO of AGI Deployment, explained the rationale directly. “As I’ve been thinking about the future of how we communicate at OpenAI, one thing that’s become clear is that the standard communications playbook just doesn’t apply to us,” she wrote. “We’re not a typical company. We’re driving a really big technological shift. And with the mission of bringing AGI to the world comes a responsibility to help create a space for a real, constructive conversation about the changes AI creates,” per OpenAI.
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TBPN will sit within OpenAI’s Strategy organization and report to Chris Lehane, the company’s chief global affairs officer. Coogan and Hays will also contribute to OpenAI’s broader communications and marketing efforts outside the show.
Altman was direct about his enthusiasm. “TBPN is my favorite tech show,” he posted on X. “We want them to keep that going and for them to do what they do so well. I don’t expect them to go any easier on us,”.
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The editorial independence question
The acquisition raises an obvious concern. TBPN regularly covers OpenAI, its competitors, and the broader AI industry. Once owned by the company it covers, how independent can it really be?
OpenAI has explicitly committed to preserving TBPN’s editorial independence. Simo wrote that TBPN will “continue to run their programming, choose their guests, and make their own editorial decisions,” calling it “foundational to their credibility,” per OpenAI.
Coogan echoed the point on the show itself. “TBPN is not going away,” he said. “We’re going to be live every day, three hours, long as we want. We have a lot of flexibility.” He added: “We can say whatever we want because we’re live, and we don’t need to run anything through anyone,”.
Co-host Hays framed the deal in broader terms. “While we’ve been critical of the industry at times, after getting to know Sam and the OpenAI team, what stood out most was their openness to feedback and commitment to getting this right,” he said. “Moving from commentary to real impact in how this technology is distributed and understood globally is incredibly important to us,” per OpenAI.
Key facts about the TBPN acquisition:
- TBPN launched in October 2024; daily livestream format began March 2025.
- Hosts: John Coogan and Jordi Hays, both former tech founders
- Average viewership: ~70,000 per episode across platforms.
- 2025 ad revenue: ~$5 million; 2026 revenue projection: $30 million+, per CNBC
- TBPN will report to Chris Lehane within OpenAI’s Strategy org.
- The show will wind down its advertising business following the acquisition.
What it means for OpenAI
The deal comes just days after OpenAI announced a $122 billion funding round at an $852 billion post-money valuation. It also follows the company’s recent shutdown of Sora, its video generation product, just one week prior.
TechCrunch noted the significance of who TBPN reports to inside OpenAI. Chris Lehane, described as a master of political strategy, joined OpenAI in 2024 and has been a key figure in shaping the company’s policy positions, including its push to prevent states from regulating AI.
For a company that is remaking how the world processes information, the acquisition of a show that shapes how Silicon Valley talks about itself is a telling move. OpenAI is not just building the technology. It now owns part of the conversation about it.
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