July 23, 2025 – Yesterday, Fidji Simo, the former head of the Facebook App, announced via a blog post on OpenAI’s official website that she has joined the company and will soon take on the role of head of the applications division. In her post, Simo shared her insights into the future of AI, expressing her belief that AI has the potential to significantly enhance the quality of human life. This move suggests that OpenAI is placing a greater emphasis on strategic application services going forward.
Simo is no stranger to leadership roles in the tech industry. Prior to joining OpenAI, she served as the CEO of Instacart, a prominent U.S. fresh grocery delivery platform, after leading the Facebook App. She is expected to officially assume her new position at OpenAI in a few weeks, where she will spearhead the expansion of application-based products and drive the deeper integration of AI technology into everyday life.
In her blog, Simo reflected on the transformative power of technological revolutions. She noted that while each new wave of innovation has the potential to expand access to resources for ordinary people, enabling smarter decision-making, reshaping environments, and offering new ways to control one’s destiny, it also carries the risk of concentrating wealth and power. With this in mind, she emphasized that OpenAI has a responsibility to design and distribute AI technologies in a conscious and inclusive manner.
Meanwhile, according to a report by The Information, as of March this year, ChatGPT had reached 500 million weekly active users, with over 20 million paying subscribers. OpenAI founder and CEO Sam Altman further revealed during a TED talk in April that the number of weekly users had surged to nearly 800 million, highlighting the platform’s remarkable growth trajectory.
