From “AI work slop” to zero‑person startups: Sam Altman lays out his vision for AGI’s future

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OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently discussed the future of work and AI with Rowan Cheung of The Rundown AI. He covered topics like how AI will affect jobs, the potential for scientific discoveries, the pursuit of AGI (artificial general intelligence), the current quality of AI’s output, and what work might look like once AGI is achieved.

I recently heard Sam Altman talk about a friendly wager he and some friends have going. They’re betting on when we’ll see the first company worth a billion dollars that’s run completely by AI. He believes AI is getting more powerful all the time, but he also pointed out that it’s not quite at the point where it could independently manage a company of that size just yet.

Altman also shared that the original discussion revolved around when the first company worth a billion dollars with just one human employee would launch. However, he believes it will likely take several years before we see a billion-dollar company completely run by AI.

During a recent 30-minute interview, the CEO of OpenAI acknowledged that the idea of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) is somewhat unclear. Like many others, he explained that he has several ways of defining AGI, and it’s more than just an AI that’s smarter than humans in most areas.

Interestingly, Altman seemed unconcerned by the debate surrounding the important benchmark. He was excited that the technology had reached a point where it could contribute to new discoveries and expand our collective knowledge.

It’s hard to put into words exactly how significant this is, but it’s a really important development. We’re just starting to explore its potential, and we’re confident we can make a lot of progress with it in the months and years ahead. That’s a big step forward.

OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman

As a tech enthusiast, I’m incredibly excited about the potential of AI to revolutionize science. We’re talking about breakthroughs that could lead to cures for diseases and even unlock new understandings of physics! Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, thinks we’ll get used to these rapid advances, even if it means a bit of initial shock. He jokes that we’ll have a two-week period of being amazed and slightly freaked out, then just accept it as the new normal. He put it perfectly: “It’s only weird once!”

AI is creating work slop

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwnVUiwObl8

In recent years, many organizations have started using artificial intelligence to improve how their employees work and increase overall productivity.

This has unfortunately created a new problem called “AI work slop”—work produced by AI that looks good on the surface but is actually shallow and requires employees to do more work to fix it.

A recent survey of over 1,000 workers found that 41% had to fix errors made by colleagues who used AI tools in the past month. On average, it took nearly two hours to correct these mistakes, costing each employee around $186 monthly. This suggests that, right now, AI is creating more work than it’s saving, and may actually be hindering productivity instead of helping with challenging tasks.

As I’ve been researching the societal impact of AI, one thing Sam Altman pointed out really resonated with me. He suggests AI is fundamentally shifting how we view work itself. He used a fascinating analogy – imagining how difficult it would be for a farmer from a previous generation to understand today’s jobs, especially those created by the internet and modern technology. It really highlights how dramatically the landscape of work is changing, and how AI is accelerating that change.

Okay, so everyone’s wondering what life will be like *after* we finally get to Artificial General Intelligence – AGI. This executive thinks we’ll still find plenty to do and things that matter, which is reassuring! But he also pointed out that what we *consider* ‘work’ is going to shift dramatically. Honestly, it sounds like it won’t even *feel* like work as we know it today – it’ll be something completely different.

Sam Altman acknowledged some immediate concerns about the impact of AI, but remains optimistic that people will find fulfilling work despite the changes. This comes after other tech executives, like Anthropic’s Dario Amodei, predicted AI could eliminate as much as half of entry-level white collar jobs, potentially leaving many young people unemployed. Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, has also suggested AI will eventually take over most tasks currently done by humans.

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2025-10-09 20:44