Vanity Fair names OpenAI's Sam Altman most influential person, ahead of Musk
Version 2: Reporting on the ranking has widened to a third outlet, the state news agency RIA Novosti, which frames it as a list of the most influential people in the United States rather than of the world, while the substance of the result is unchanged.
In short
Vanity Fair has placed OpenAI head Sam Altman first in its ranking of the most influential people, according to TASS, Kommersant and RIA Novosti. TASS reported he also placed ahead of Elon Musk and of Anthropic head Dario Amodei, who is second on Kommersant's account of the top five, followed by Musk, Nvidia's Jensen Huang and US Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh. Kommersant said the list runs to 50 names and is dominated by Americans.
Read the full story 2 min read
Vanity Fair has placed Sam Altman, the head of OpenAI, first in its ranking of the most influential people, according to TASS, Kommersant and RIA Novosti. Kommersant said the magazine has published the list since 1994 and describes its purpose as identifying “people who influenced the course of events — from the information age to the collapse of the high-technology dot-com bubble, from the financial crisis to the rise in popularity of social networks”. The outlets framed the ranking differently: Kommersant said it is a list of the 50 most influential people in the world, while RIA Novosti's headline described it as a ranking of the most influential people in the United States. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Kommersant reported that the magazine explained its choice by writing that “perhaps one day Altman will be considered ‘the Oppenheimer of our time’ — a man who single-handedly determines the reality in which we live”, and noted that he heads the company that developed the ChatGPT chatbot. TASS reported that Altman also placed ahead of Elon Musk and of Dario Amodei, head of the AI company Anthropic. [ 1 , 2 ]
According to Kommersant, the top five is dominated by the technology industry: Dario Amodei is second, Elon Musk third, Nvidia head Jensen Huang fourth and US Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh fifth, the only person in the group not working in high technology. Kommersant said the vast majority of people on the list are Americans — politicians, corporate heads and television presenters among them. It reported that Pope Leo XIV is in 18th place and is also American, that Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who runs Abu Dhabi's sovereign investment fund, is 24th, and that the British and American film director Christopher Nolan is 26th. Erika Kirk, widow of the killed American activist Charlie Kirk, closes the list, which in the magazine's view reflects her continuation of her husband's political activity within the conservative MAGA movement. [ 2 ]
Why it matters
The ranking is an editorial selection by a US magazine, not a decision by any government or company, and it places artificial-intelligence executives at the top. Its practical effect outside the United States is limited, but it is being reported by Russian state and business outlets as a signal of where influence is currently seen to sit.
Key facts
- Vanity Fair published a list of the 50 most influential people, a ranking Kommersant said the magazine has published since 1994. [ 2 ]
- OpenAI head Sam Altman took first place in the ranking, according to TASS and Kommersant, with RIA Novosti reporting the same. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Altman placed ahead of Elon Musk and of Anthropic head Dario Amodei, TASS and Kommersant reported. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Kommersant reported that Dario Amodei was second, Elon Musk third, Nvidia head Jensen Huang fourth and US Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh fifth. [ 2 ]
- Kommersant reported that four of the top five work in the technology industry, with Warsh the exception. [ 2 ]
- Kommersant quoted the magazine as saying that Altman might one day be considered “the Oppenheimer of our time — a man who single-handedly determines the reality in which we live”. [ 2 ]
- Kommersant reported that most people on the list are Americans, including Pope Leo XIV in 18th place, Abu Dhabi sovereign fund head Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan in 24th and director Christopher Nolan in 26th. [ 2 ]
- Erika Kirk, widow of the killed American activist Charlie Kirk, closes the list, which Kommersant said the magazine credited with continuing her husband's political activity in the conservative MAGA movement. [ 2 ]
Confirmed by several sources
Still unclear
- Whether the ranking covers the whole world or the United States only. Kommersant describes it as a list of the 50 most influential people in the world, while RIA Novosti's headline calls it a ranking of the most influential people in the United States; TASS does not specify.
- The positions of names below the top five and the magazine's stated reasoning. Only Kommersant sets out the full top five, the other placings and the quotation explaining the choice of Altman. RIA Novosti published a headline with no summary text in the documents, and TASS carried only a short feed item naming Altman, Musk and Amodei.
- Whether the ranking carries any formal significance beyond the magazine's editorial selection. The documents describe it only as a ranking published by Vanity Fair, with no institutional or official role attached to it.