Ilya Sutskever, one of the original minds behind OpenAI, has wasted no time in charting a new course. Just a month after officially stepping away from his role as chief scientist at the AI powerhouse, Sutskever has announced the launch of a fresh venture: Safe Superintelligence Inc., or SSI.
Partnering with ex-Y Combinator figure Daniel Gross and fellow former OpenAI engineer Daniel Levy, Sutskever’s new company is built with a clear mission — to tackle the hard questions around artificial superintelligence, with safety as its first and only priority.
At OpenAI, Sutskever was at the heart of research into AI safety, especially concerning powerful systems that could exceed human-level intelligence. He co-led the company’s Superalignment team alongside Jan Leike, another key voice in the conversation. But internal disagreements with OpenAI leadership over how to handle such safety efforts led to a dramatic exit. Both Sutskever and Leike left the company in May. While Leike has since joined Anthropic, a competing AI firm, Sutskever is forging ahead independently.
The goals of SSI are as ambitious as they are specific. A tweet from the company’s official account captured its philosophy: “SSI is our mission, our name, and our entire product roadmap… Our team, investors, and business model are all aligned to achieve SSI.” The statement emphasized that technical safety and capability growth must evolve together, and that true progress depends on solving both through deep scientific and engineering advances.
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Sutskever’s earlier work shows how long he has been sounding the alarm about the risks of unchecked AI development. In a 2023 blog post co-authored with Leike, he warned that superintelligent AI could arrive within the decade, and that it may not automatically act in humanity’s interest. That’s the foundation for his vision now: a company not distracted by commercial product cycles or corporate red tape.
SSI’s structure reflects that commitment. Unlike OpenAI, which started as a nonprofit before pivoting to a hybrid model to accommodate its growing funding needs, SSI was created from the outset as a for-profit entity. According to Bloomberg, Sutskever declined to comment on current funding details or company valuation. However, co-founder Daniel Gross made one thing clear: finding investors won’t be a challenge. “Out of all the problems we face,” he told Bloomberg, “raising capital is not going to be one of them.”
The startup is already active, with offices open in Palo Alto and Tel Aviv. Recruitment is underway, and the focus is sharply aimed at building a world-class technical team to bring Sutskever’s vision to life.
Whether SSI will reshape the future of AI or stand as a counterbalance to the commercial pressures of mainstream AI labs remains to be seen. But what’s certain is that Sutskever is not backing away from the challenge — he’s leaning into it with everything he’s got.
Source: ssi
