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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Andrej Karpathy announced his second departure from OpenAI on February 13, 2024. He said he had left the previous day to pursue personal projects and that no particular event, issue, or “drama” had caused the decision. OpenAI gave a similar public explanation and said his responsibilities had moved to a senior researcher who had worked closely with him.
This was not a new 2026 resignation. Karpathy later worked on education-focused projects and, in May 2026, was reported to have joined Anthropic’s pre-training team.
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What happened when Andrej Karpathy left OpenAI?
Karpathy’s public announcement came on February 13, 2024, when he said he had left OpenAI “yesterday”—approximately February 12. He described his roughly one-year return to the company positively, praising its people, team, and technical roadmap. His immediate plan, he said, was to work on personal projects.
Karpathy also directly rejected the idea that a specific incident or dispute had triggered his exit. That establishes his public explanation, but it cannot prove that no private disagreement ever existed. The available reporting does not identify a conflict, firing, or forced departure.
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Contemporary coverage from TechCrunch reported both Karpathy’s explanation and OpenAI’s response.
Why the headline says “again”
“Again” refers to Karpathy’s unusual career sequence:
- He was a founding member of OpenAI.
- He left for Tesla in 2017.
- At Tesla, he led AI work associated with the company’s Autopilot efforts.
- He left Tesla in 2022.
- He returned to OpenAI in 2023.
- He departed OpenAI for a second time in February 2024.
His official biography describes his work as an AI researcher and educator and identifies his roles at OpenAI and Tesla. “Founding member” is the more precise description used there; it avoids assuming that every reference to Karpathy as an OpenAI “co-founder” uses the same definition.
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What Karpathy said—and what remains unproven
The documented explanation was straightforward: he wanted to pursue personal projects, and he said the departure was not prompted by a particular event or drama. He did not announce a new employer when he left.
Readers nevertheless wondered whether the decision was connected to OpenAI’s turbulent 2023 leadership episode, when Sam Altman was temporarily removed and later reinstated. The timing made that question understandable, especially because Karpathy was a prominent technical figure who had returned only about a year earlier. But chronology is not causation. Neither Karpathy’s public explanation nor OpenAI’s statement connected his departure to that crisis.
There is therefore no sound basis for saying that Karpathy left because of Sam Altman, opposed OpenAI’s commercial direction, was pushed out, or was responding to a company-wide crisis. “No drama” should be treated as an attributed claim about the public explanation—not proof that every private conversation was conflict-free.
What OpenAI said
OpenAI said Karpathy was leaving to pursue personal projects and expressed gratitude for his contributions. The company added that his responsibilities had been transferred to a senior researcher who had worked closely with him, but the reporting cited at the time did not identify that person.
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What was Karpathy working on at OpenAI?
Karpathy’s public biography had referred to building a kind of “J.A.R.V.I.S.” at OpenAI. In context, that was a broad conceptual description of a helpful, conversational AI assistant. It was not confirmation of a formally launched OpenAI product, and it should not be presented as evidence that he led a named system released by the company.
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His public profile also mattered to the story. Beyond his senior roles at OpenAI and Tesla, Karpathy had become a prominent AI educator and communicator through writing, talks, and instructional videos. His departure consequently attracted more attention than an ordinary personnel change.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What happened after OpenAI?
Karpathy later pursued education-related AI work, including Eureka Labs, described in later reporting as a company focused on applying AI assistants to education. That development fits his February 2024 statement that he planned to work on personal projects, but it was not announced as his destination at the time he left OpenAI.
In May 2026, TechCrunch reported that Karpathy joined Anthropic’s pre-training team. Axios also reported the move. That later role should not be retroactively treated as the reason for his February 2024 departure: when he announced that exit, he said only that he intended to pursue personal projects.
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Timeline
| Date | Development |
|---|---|
| Founding period | Karpathy was a founding member of OpenAI. |
| 2017 | He left OpenAI for Tesla. |
| 2022 | He left Tesla after leading AI-related work associated with Autopilot. |
| 2023 | He returned to OpenAI. |
| February 12, 2024 | Approximate effective departure date described in his public post. |
| February 13, 2024 | Public announcement of his second OpenAI departure. |
| May 2026 | He was reported to have joined Anthropic’s pre-training team. |
The bottom line
Andrej Karpathy’s “second” OpenAI departure was announced on February 13, 2024—not in 2026. Karpathy said he was leaving for personal projects and denied that a specific incident or drama caused the move. OpenAI publicly gave the same broad reason. The departure became significant because Karpathy was a founding OpenAI figure, a former Tesla AI leader, and a high-profile educator who had returned to OpenAI only about a year earlier.
The public record does not establish a particular conflict. His later work at Eureka Labs and reported move to Anthropic explain what came next, not why he left OpenAI in 2024.
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