OpenAI has lost another senior executive. Chris Malone, the head of data centers, left the company last week, according to The Wall Street Journal. He had spent nearly five years at Meta and more than a decade at Google before joining OpenAI only in March 2025.
The timing of his departure is notable because the position oversees the execution of infrastructure strategy, one of the most closely watched seats amid the current wave of AI data center construction. Malone joined shortly after the Stargate project was unveiled.
The reason for his departure has not been clarified. In a statement sent to TechCrunch, OpenAI said it “recently restructured” its infrastructure division “to support the scale and pace of work,” and that the data center team now has “many experienced individuals with clear leadership.” According to the WSJ, following the restructuring, Malone stopped reporting directly to President Greg Brockman and instead began reporting to Vice President Sachin Katti.
Malone’s departure is not an isolated incident. Business Insider recently tallied a total of 13 executives who have left OpenAI in 2026, several within the past month alone. These are senior positions, not junior hires. About two weeks earlier, the company replaced Chief Revenue Officer Denise Dresser after less than eight months. That followed the departures of longtime COO Brad Lightcap and Fidji Simo, who was once seen as the second-in-command alongside Sam Altman. In July, the company also lost its head of ethics, and last week reports emerged that the preparedness team (tasked with assessing catastrophic risks) had been disbanded.
This wave of turnover raises questions just as OpenAI prepares for an IPO. The public listing, originally expected this year, has reportedly been pushed back to 2027, amid growing skepticism over valuation and concerns that profits remain disproportionate to the massive scale of investment in the lab.
Context is important. Part of the talent drain stems from shuttered projects (such as the Sora team), and part from personal circumstances (such as Fidji Simo stepping down due to a chronic illness). Even so, the high concentration of departures across infrastructure, revenue, and operations roles right during the pre-IPO phase is a signal the market will scrutinize closely when assessing the valuation of AI labs.