Dario Amodei (b. 1983) is an American AI researcher and entrepreneur, best known as the co-founder and CEO of [[🏦 Anthropic|Anthropic]], the company behind the [[Claude]] [[🔎 Large Language Models (LLMs)|large language model]] series. He previously served as vice-president of research at [[🏦 OpenAI|OpenAI]]. In 2025, Time magazine named him one of the world’s 100 most influential people. ## **Early Life & Education** Born and raised in [[San Francisco]] to an Italian craftsman father and a project-manager mother, Amodei attended Lowell High School before beginning his physics undergraduate work at Caltech. He transferred to [[🏫 Stanford|Stanford University]] to complete his B.S. in physics and went on to earn a Ph.D. in the electrophysiology of neural circuits at [[Princeton]] in 2011. He then held a postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford’s School of Medicine. ## **Career Trajectory** Amodei spent brief stints at [[Baidu]] (2014–15) and [[🏦 Alphabet ($GOOGL, $GOOG)|Google]] before joining OpenAI in 2016, where he rapidly rose to lead its research efforts. In 2021, he and his sister Daniela—along with other former OpenAI leaders—left to launch Anthropic, motivated by differing visions for AI’s development and safety. Under his leadership, Anthropic has become a major player in the race to build powerful yet responsible AI. ## **Public Engagement & Thought Leadership** Amodei has testified before the U.S. Senate on AI risks, particularly around autonomous weapons, and has declined overtures from OpenAI’s board to replace Sam Altman or merge the two companies. In October 2024, he published “[[Machines of Loving Grace]],” an essay exploring how AI might be harnessed for human well-being. His work has earned him prominent coverage in outlets like The New York Times, Wired, and Fortune, and recognition on Time’s 2025 Time 100 list.