Andrej Karpathy

Who He Is

Andrej Karpathy is a computer scientist and entrepreneur who helped found OpenAI, the research lab behind ChatGPT and other widely used AI systems. He left OpenAI in 2019 to join Tesla, where he became the director of Artificial Intelligence and Autopilot. In that role, he oversaw the development of Tesla's self-driving technology and later the Optimus humanoid robot project.

What He Works On

At Tesla, Karpathy focused on making cars drive themselves using cameras and neural networks instead of expensive sensor setups used by other companies. He has been vocal about the challenges and limits of AI agents, recently describing them as overhyped and not as useful as many people claim. He has also spoken about how AI is reshaping the US job market.

His Recent Views

In October 2026, Karpathy discussed what he calls an "AI perception gap" that is growing wider. He said fewer people truly understand what modern language models can and cannot do, and that public understanding is splitting into different tiers depending on how deeply people use AI. This mismatch between belief and reality, he argued, could lead to poor decisions about technology and policy.

Questions people ask

What did Andrej Karpathy do at OpenAI?

He was a co-founder of OpenAI, the research company behind some of the most well-known AI systems like ChatGPT. He left in 2019 to join Tesla.

What is he doing now?

As of 2026, he has been commenting on AI developments and public understanding of the technology, particularly around what language models can actually do and the growing gap between hype and reality.

Why is he famous?

He is known for helping build two major AI projects: OpenAI's language models and Tesla's self-driving car technology. He is one of the few people who worked at the center of both the generative AI boom and the push for autonomous vehicles.