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Last week OpenAI acquired TBPN, a daily live tech talkshow hosted by John Coogan and Jordi Hays. The show broadcasts for three hours every weekday from Los Angeles, drawing an audience of founders, venture capitalists and senior tech figures.
The deal sits within OpenAI's strategy organisation and reports to Chris Lehane, the company's chief global affairs officer. It arrives as OpenAI pushes forward on multiple fronts, having recently closed a $122 billion funding round and moved COO Brad Lightcap into a new special projects role.
What went down
OpenAI acquired TBPN, a daily live tech talkshow based in LA
Hosts John Coogan and Jordi Hays confirmed the deal on air
TBPN sits within OpenAI's strategy group under Chris Lehane
OpenAI says the show will keep its editorial independence
This is OpenAI's first acquisition of a media property
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Why does this matter?
AI companies have shaped public perception through blog posts, lobbying and social media. Owning a media property with an established audience is a step further, giving OpenAI a direct daily channel to the tech community's most influential voices.
The move comes as public trust in AI companies faces growing pressure, from safety concerns to governance questions. A platform that appears editorially independent while owned by the subject of its coverage creates a genuinely complicated dynamic for audiences.
Our take
Tech companies acquiring media companies isn’t so unusual. SEO tool Semrush acquired Third Door Media (SMX) in October 2024. But the TBPN deal signals that OpenAI views the conversation around AI as a strategic asset. With $122 billion in fresh capital and ambitions spanning enterprise software, consumer products and infrastructure, the company has a direct interest in how these developments get framed. TBPN's audience of founders and investors makes it a particularly useful channel for reaching the people who allocate capital and talent across the tech sector.
As AI labs grow into some of the most powerful companies in the world, the question of who narrates their rise becomes more pressing. Tech companies have long sponsored conferences, funded think tanks and cultivated press relationships. Acquiring a media outlet outright is more direct, and other well-capitalised labs may follow. The credibility of TBPN's editorial independence will depend on whether it covers OpenAI's missteps with the same rigour it applies to competitors.
Another big thing… Anthropic leaks Claude Code source code
Anthropic had a turbulent week after human error led to the accidental release of Claude Code's internal source code. An internal file mistakenly bundled into a software update exposed nearly 2,000 files and 500,000 lines of code, which spread rapidly on GitHub and X, where a post sharing the leak attracted over 29 million views.
Anthropic issued around 8,000 copyright takedown requests. Developers found blueprints for a Tamagotchi-style coding assistant and an always-on AI agent within the leaked files. The same week, Anthropic launched a political action committee ahead of the midterms and reportedly acquired biotech startup Coefficient Bio for $400 million.
