One of the most influential leaders in AI: Mira Murati
- Angela Novelli
- May 7
- 3 min read
The stories of women like Mira Murati, who break down barriers and overcome challenges in the tech industry, serve as an inspiration to women in STEM, and specifically women in tech. Up next in our blog series on influential women in technology is the CEO of Thinking Machines Lab and former CTO of ChatGPT’s parent company, OpenAI. Mira Murati has many years of experience under her belt, and now she is using that to look to the future of AI as leader of her own startup.
AI-focused companies have a disproportionately low number of women in leadership roles. Research indicates that only 30% of leadership positions and 10% of CEO and top tech roles are held by women. Even in these male-dominated positions, women like Mira Murati have proven that women can still thrive and reach their goals. Let’s explore more about her journey as one of the most influential leaders in AI.
Mira Murati’s Background
From a young age, Murati had a strong interest in mathematics. Born in Albania, she spent many of her childhood years studying math and building her skills, even participating in Olympiads and math competitions. Her skills certainly did not go unnoticed; she was awarded a scholarship to attend Pearson United World College of the Pacific on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada at age 16 for her academic achievements. Murati later went on to receive a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from Colby College and a Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering from Dartmouth College.
During her early career, Murati worked at a variety of large companies and left her mark through her excellent work. Some of these companies included Goldman Sachs, Zodiac Aerospace, Tesla, where she was the Senior Product Manager for the Model X, and Leap Motion, where she was a vice president of Product and Engineering.
“I was always interested in how the brain works and intelligence, more theoretically and at abstract levels. But I’d say that, you know, the art of sort of what I pursued was more in the theme of trying to apply my knowledge and try to apply technology to really hard problems that in some way makes our lives better.”
Working at OpenAI
Mira Murati joined OpenAI in 2018 and held several different positions during her time there, including Vice President of Applied AI and Partnerships and Senior Vice President of Research, Product, and Partnerships. In 2022, she was promoted to Chief Technology Officer (CTO). She led teams that were working on the now widely popular AI chatbot known as ChatGPT, as well as the text-to-image AI DALL-E and the code-generating system Codex. Murati also served as interim CEO for a few days after CEO Sam Altman was abruptly fired.
Mira Murati’s innovative work at OpenAI has impacted so many that implement the use of AI into their daily activities, and inspires others, especially women in tech, to achieve great feats in the industry. Dartmouth College awarded her an honorary Doctor of Science degree on June 9, 2024, to recognize her contributions in the fields of Artificial Intelligence, technology, and engineering.
After working for over six years at OpenAI, Murati decided to step down from her role in September 2024. Her immense contributions have left an impact on the company that now exists as a worldwide leader in AI. Shortly after, she began a new AI startup called Thinking Machines Lab.
“AI is a really incredible and magical technology, but the breadth, the reach, the consequence, is also great. Our entire world is engineering—like our cities, our bridges, everything—and there’s always risk that comes with that, and you manage that risk with responsibility.”
Thinking Machines Lab
Mira Murati has created a new AI startup called Thinking Machines Lab along with 29 employees that used to work at firms like OpenAI, Character AI, and Google DeepMind. This AI research and product startup is developing a future where AI tools and knowledge are accessible to everyone, empowering them to leverage AI to achieve their unique goals. With Thinking Machines Lab, Murati hopes to bridge any gaps that exist in how AI systems are trained, rapidly advancing capabilities, and the public’s ability to use AI effectively. This company wants to "make AI systems more widely understood, customizable and generally capable.”
With her new startup, Mira Murati hopes to continue to fulfill her mission of AI that works for everyone. This is AI that is not only accessible to all, but an intelligence that will benefit the world as a whole, solving problems that make people’s lives easier and better. Individuals and top leaders like Mira Murati leave such profound impacts in the tech industry and inspire those who will make up the future of AI.
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