A WSJ report finds Sam Altman sought OpenAI investment in companies where he has personal financial stakes, raising conflict concerns

The Wall Street Journal reports that Sam Altman asked OpenAI to lead a roughly $500M investment in Helion, a nuclear fusion startup where Altman is one of the largest investors, and pursued OpenAI involvement with Stoke Space, a rocket company his family office has a stake in, with some OpenAI employees and board members unaware of or uncomfortable with both proposals. OpenAI refused the Helion investment but struck a deal giving it rights to buy up to 50 gigawatts of Helion electricity by 2035, which Helion has used to attract other investors and boost the value of Altman's stake. The reporting renews questions that contributed to Altman's 2023 ouster, when the board said he had not been “consistently candid,” and comes as some shareholders have privately floated board chair Bret Taylor as a potential successor ahead of OpenAI's planned IPO.