OpenAI has completed its first media company acquisition by purchasing the popular tech industry talk show TBPN, which stands for the Technology Business Programming Network. The program will now fall under the supervision of OpenAI's chief political operative, Chris Lehane.

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Hosted by former tech founders John Coogan and Jordi Hays, TBPN is a daily three-hour live show broadcast on YouTube and X, covering technology, business, artificial intelligence, and defense. It has developed a dedicated following in Silicon Valley, serving as a forum where industry leaders can speak openly and be interviewed by their peers. Often described as a SportsCenter for the tech world, the show regularly features top executives like Mark Zuckerberg, Satya Nadella, Marc Benioff, and Sam Altman, who gather to discuss daily news and sometimes generate headlines themselves.

TBPN will maintain its own brand identity, with OpenAI providing support to help it expand. This growth is already significant; according to The Wall Street Journal, the show's empire is projected to generate over $30 million in revenue this year. OpenAI, which already produces its own in-house podcast for long-form discussions, plans to leverage the founders' "amazing comms and marketing instincts" beyond the show itself.

Fidji Simo, OpenAI’s head of AGI deployment, stated that TBPN will “bring AI to the world in a way that helps people understand the full impact of this technology on their daily lives.” She emphasized that TBPN’s unique strengths are essential for an unconventional company like OpenAI, where “the standard communications playbook just doesn’t apply.” Simo also confirmed that TBPN will retain editorial independence, continuing to “run their programming, choose their guests, and make their own editorial decisions.”

Nevertheless, the acquisition may raise questions. OpenAI is a highly valued AI laboratory nearing an IPO, and it is now buying a prominent talk show that frequently covers the company and its rivals. Once the deal is finalized, TBPN will operate within OpenAI’s strategy team and report to Chris Lehane. Lehane, known for coining the phrase “vast right-wing conspiracy” during the Clinton administration to manage press scrutiny, has been called a master of the “political dark arts.” He also leads the crypto industry super PAC Fairshake, which spent hundreds of millions in the 2024 election to oppose anti-crypto candidates. After joining OpenAI in the same year, Lehane has advised President Trump on sweeping policies, such as preventing state-level AI regulation and relaxing environmental rules that could delay data center construction.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who called TBPN his favorite tech show in a social media post, expressed confidence that the acquisition will not soften the show’s coverage or criticism of the company. “I don’t expect them to go any easier on us, am sure I’ll do my part to help enable that with occasional stupid decisions,” he wrote.

For TBPN, the partnership represents an opportunity to move beyond commentary. “While we’ve been critical of the industry at times, after getting to know Sam and the OpenAI team, what stood out most was their openness to feedback and commitment to getting this right,” Hays said in a statement. “Moving from commentary to real impact in how this technology is distributed and understood globally is incredibly important to us.”