Welcome to Eye on AI, with AI reporter Sharon Goldman. In this edition…OpenAI’s first commercial hire takes a VC role…Apple is developing an AI-powered wearable pin…In a new ‘acquihire,’ Google nabs top talent from voice AI startup Hume…OpenAI announces company reorganization with former Thinking Machines cofounder Barret Zeph overseeing enterprise push.
When Aliisa Rosenthal began her role as OpenAI’s head of sales in June 2022, the company’s first commercial hire, there were only a couple of sales reps—and not much to sell. She wasn’t even sure the company would find the right product-market fit to launch successful commercial products.
ChatGPT, of course, arrived six months later. Almost overnight, OpenAI went from a research lab with a developer audience to one of the most recognizable companies in the world. Rosenthal spent much of the rest of her time there growing her team as fast as she could, ultimately overseeing a go-to-market organization of more than 300 people.
As the company grew, however, Rosenthal realized she was ready to go small again—this time in the world of venture capital. After taking a break this summer, she announced this week that she has joined Acrew Capital as a general partner, helping its companies “navigate pricing, GTM, AI-native sales, and the commercial decisions that determine what actually scales.”
