Pro Weekly: Expect More AI Companies to Hire High-Profile C-Suites

It’s been a big few weeks for executive hires across the artificial intelligence sector, as two leading large-language model developers hired their first chief financial officers. OpenAI tapped former Nextdoor CEO Sarah Friar—who earlier in her career was CFO of Square (now called Block)—while Anthropic went with Krishna Rao, former CFO of athletic apparel company Fanatics, who earlier in his career held a senior position at Airbnb. Both hires are reflected in The Information’s org charts. 

More high-profile hires of that variety could be coming, too. Chris Davis, a managing director at executive search firm Russell Reynolds Associates, tells me AI startups are increasingly approaching his firm, seeking to add seasoned C-suite executives. In some cases, established executives have called him saying they’re hoping to pivot into AI.