Sam Altman famously has no equity in OpenAI, but these startup bets have made him a billionaire anyway

- Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has no equity in the company but has become a billionaire through investments in startups like Reddit, Stripe, and Helion. - Altman's investments, not OpenAI, have made him a billionaire for the first time. - Altman's net worth is estimated at $1 billion from startup investments, real estate, and personal bets. - Altman's investment strategy includes smaller speculative bets and larger concentrated positions, including Stripe and experimental startups like Helion and Retro Biosciences. - Altman's bold bets on Helion and Retro demonstrate his willingness to risk a high percentage of his net worth on startup bets. - Altman's investments align with his vision for the world and support his goals at OpenAI to advance artificial general intelligence. - Altman's strong belief in founders and their potential to propel human progress drives his investment philosophy. - Altman's personal mythology began with launching Loopt and investing in Y Combinator companies. - Altman's investments have been modeled off the 'power law' theory of startup investing, where a single best angel investment can outperform all other investments. - Altman's investments benefit his goals at OpenAI and aim to maximize the chances of success in advancing artificial general intelligence.