OpenAI continues to undergo significant leadership shake-ups, with multiple senior executives departing in 2026.Mandel NGAN / AFP via Getty ImagesOpenAI has undergone significant leadership changes, with multiple executives departing in 2026.Notable exits include Denise Dresser, Brad Lightcap, and Fidji Simo.OpenAI also saw reshuffling in its safety operations and ethics teams.OpenAI's revolving door is still spinning.The ChatGPT maker has lost a string of senior leaders in 2026, including former operating chief Brad Lightcap, applications CEO Fidji Simo, chief revenue officer Denise Dresser, and executives overseeing marketing, enterprise products, science, safety, and ethics. Some left to start new ventures, while some stepped back for health reasons.The departures follow another year of turnover in 2025, when OpenAI lost its chief people and communications officers, a top researcher who went on to launch an AI-science startup, and at least seven researchers recruited by Meta.Here are the prominent OpenAI leaders who have headed for the exits in 2026.Denise DresserDenise Dresser is leaving her role as OpenAI's chief revenue officer.Bloomberg/Getty ImagesOpenAI announced in August that its chief revenue officer, Denise Dresser, is leaving the company. Dresser began the position in December 2025."Denise will leave OpenAI to pursue other opportunities following a transition period, during which she will work closely with the business team to support our customers," the company wrote in a blog post.Dali Rajic will take over the role.Brad LightcapLeigh Vogel/Getty Images The Hill & Valley ForumBrad Lightcap, who worked at OpenAI since 2018, announced his departure on X in August. Lightcap told his followers that he's leaving the startup "to start something new.""Over the last few months, I've been focused on the next horizon and what would stand in the way of mission success. I believe there are a few important new things the world will need to get right as we enter this next period," Lightcap said on X. "I'll have more to share soon, but I believe in OpenAI more than ever and am excited to help you all advance the mission from a different vantage point."Lightcap began his tenure at OpenAI as chief financial officer before transitioning to chief operating officer in 2022. In April, OpenAI said Lightcap moved to a role focused on special projects.Fidji SimoJOEL SAGET/AFP via Getty ImagesIn July, Fidji Simo announced she would step down from her role as OpenAI's CEO of applications and transition to a part-time advisor role. Simo, who was diagnosed with postural tachycardia syndrome, or POTS, in 2019, initially took medical leave in April."Over the last seven years, I've spent countless hours in doctors' offices, dealing with symptoms, treatments, insurance, uncertainty, and all the invisible work that comes with being a patient," Simo wrote on X in July. "Like millions of others living with chronic illness, I've experienced firsthand how difficult healthcare can be to navigate, even when you have every possible advantage."Simo became the CEO of applications in May 2025.Kevin WeilBloomberg/Getty ImagesKevin Weil announced his departure on X in April."It's been a mind-expanding two years, from Chief Product Officer to joining the research team and starting OpenAI for Science," he said.Weil first joined OpenAI in 2024 as its chief product officer. He later served as vice president of OpenAI for Science, an initiative to build an AI-powered platform to accelerate scientific discovery, starting in October 2025.Currently, Weil heads an AI science startup that sought a valuation of at least $750 million.Bill PeeblesBill Peebles worked as a research scientist at OpenAI for three years before leaving the company in April 2026. Peebles served as the head of Sora, an AI model that uses text prompts to create videos."While the original Sora ignited a huge amount of investment in video across the industry, it took the next generation of models with Sora 2 for the broader public to understand the transformation happening," Peeble said on X. "I'm proud of all the sleepless nights before and after the launch this team endured in order to deploy the technology in a responsible way and help steer societal norms."The video generation AI model first became available to users in December 2024. Nine months later, OpenAI released an updated model — Sora 2 — and an app meant to rival social media sites. Although the app drummed up major hype, its momentum quickly faded.OpenAI shut down Sora and its app this April.Srinivas NarayananSrinivas Narayanan, OpenAI's chief technology officer for business applications, announced in April that he was leaving after three years."Leading the b2b engineering team has been an enormous privilege," Narayanan wrote on LinkedIn. "With the recent/upcoming product launches, this felt like the right time to step back."Narayanan said he planned to spend time with his parents in India before deciding what to
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