Sam Altman praises Indians, calls Americans unusually pessimistic about AI

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has noticed a striking difference in how people in India and the US view artificial intelligence. While Americans tend to be more pessimistic about AI, he says Indians are considerably more optimistic and are already finding new ways to use the technology. Altman also revealed that India has overtaken the US to become OpenAI's biggest market by the number of users.During a conversation with entrepreneur Raj Shamani on his podcast Figuring Out, Altman spoke about India's growing adoption of AI and the enthusiasm he sees among users. He said the country has a strong community of people experimenting with the technology, including those using it to build businesses."When I talk to somebody in US, a random person, they're slightly pessimistic about AI and when I talk to people in India, they're very optimistic about it. It's an incredible difference," Altman said.When Shamani asked whether India was actually a bigger market for OpenAI than the US, Altman confirmed that it was. He said India leads in terms of users and continues to grow quickly. He also shared an example of an Indian student who used OpenAI's tools to organise an entire fundraising effort for his school despite having no previous experience with fundraising. Altman said such examples show how people in India are putting AI to practical use. Explaining why the two countries may have different attitudes towards AI, Altman pointed to their economic conditions. He said developing economies with faster growth and a greater demand for products and services tend to be more welcoming of new technology."One thing that many people have observed is that countries that are developing faster, where the economy is growing faster and there's like more of a need for products and services and like, you know, there's just huge undersupply, are more welcoming of AI than more developed economies," he said.Sam Altman says not having equity in OpenAI was a mistake During the interview, Altman also spoke about a decision that has often raised questions about his role at OpenAI. Despite leading the company, he does not own equity in it. Asked about this, he admitted that the decision had been a mistake, even though he originally made it for what he believed were good reasons."I think not taking, not having equity in OpenAI has been a mistake. I did it for what I thought were good reasons. I think it's just been hugely confusing to people," Altman said.He explained that people often find it difficult to understand why someone would spend years building a company without holding an ownership stake in it. To explain his position, he compared his work at OpenAI to an artist dedicating years to a project or a sportsperson spending countless hours practising without necessarily making a fortune from it.Altman said he considers building OpenAI to be some of the most interesting and important work he could take up. However, he acknowledged that his decision to stay away from equity has been difficult for people to understand because it goes against what they normally expect from someone running a company.The discussion also touched upon the criticism he faces in the US. Altman said Americans are generally sceptical of people in positions of power, particularly those leading major technology companies. While he believes this scrutiny is sometimes justified, he feels the criticism directed at him has gone too far.- Ends