> with an average email response time of about 5 minutes to anything
Why is this being praised?
Can't stand the "always on" economy. It's OK to not immediately to respond to things.
Greg
81–90 of 103 posts
Re: Greg
#82The moral of the story here, clearly, is that when you're one of a pair of billionaires collectively responsible for some of the most successful entrepreneurship successes in recent history, and you decide to have someone handle logistics for a new venture, make sure they're enthusiastic.
This is reductionist and offensive. (1) On a practical level, although I don't know Greg's personal financial situation, he was the CTO of Stripe for five years. He's rich enough not to work. He works exactly because he's enthusiastic. (2) Secondly, to say that Greg merely handles logistics for OpenAI is to willfully ignore the post as written, and the reality on the ground. Also, I'm not sure Sam is a billionaire, a…
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Re: Greg
#83I disliked the article. I think sama is simultaneously over-personalizing and also losing context and perspective.
Sure, maybe it is a generalizable description of virtuous qualities but it also strikes me as something different and much worse. Here's another interpretation "I sure am fortunate that I know this wealthy, well-connected person who helps me with my businesses that require knowing wealthy, well-connected people."
Re: Greg
#84Cool but why doesn't he get a last name. I don't actually know who it is.
Greg Brockman. It's in the second sentence of the post.
It's still a nearly context-free headline, which is a pet peeve of mine at Hacker News. The headline should contain actual information that tells me why I care and should click. "Greg" is quite insufficient, with the only saving grace being I can see the domain name and know who Sam Altman is.
Re: Greg
#85Earlier quoted context omitted.
> They want to equalize the footing in AI for everyone Equal opportunity to pay , or actually democratizing it so that anybody who wants to use it can reap the benefits? I'm willing to bet it's not the latter, given the reliance of AI on large training corpuses and machine time.
I think its more about making the same research available to everyone, or other things that are relatively free to distribute (like code, even though, as hinted, it does not mean that everything will be open-sourced as its written). Although, you do make a good point. If only the most powerful companies can afford meaningful machine time, how democratized can AI be?
> If only the most powerful companies can afford meaningful machine time, how democratized can AI be?
That's the big trick that nobody seems to give a shit about, as they scramble around to make a buck.
Having the research or even the code doesn't really give you an advantage. We're just trading one set of overlords for another.
Re: Greg
#86The moral of the story here, clearly, is that when you're one of a pair of billionaires collectively responsible for some of the most successful entrepreneurship successes in recent history, and you decide to have someone handle logistics for a new venture, make sure they're enthusiastic.
For sure it's easier for me than almost anyone else to recruit a cofounder, but I think (hope) the observations about important traits to look for are helpful more generally.
Re: Greg
#87Greg is humble, resourceful, and smart. That combination alone is enough to move mountains. However, what Sam's piece is missing is the "Why?". Why would someone who can do anything do YOUR thing and take any crud task it takes to finish the job, especially after they've made their fortune? Greg should give his own "Why?" about OpenAI. From what I know if 100 years from now someone looks back at this fork in the road…
> Either a couple of big players will own the most powerful instrument in the hands of mankind, to use at their (or their highest bidder's) discretion, or mankind will jointly get to ensure the instrument has a safety handle to protect life and all things most important.
Missing, of course, the strongest possibility, which is that said instrument, either covertly or overtly, is the big player which is calling the shots.
Re: Greg
#88Nice and sweet love letter to Greg. Shared with our founders.
We have a slightly alternative model: There hasn't been a consistent Greg 5+ years, but there is always a founder willing to be Greg when the previous Greg needs a break. Especially important once people start having children and go through the various ups and downs of life.
Re: Greg
#89Earlier quoted context omitted.
"should hell ever freeze over and I secure funding some day" Your low self-esteem is sabotaging you.
Ah, it was intended as half tongue-in-cheek. Making light of tough situations is usually for the best. Sorry for not making that more clear. My smiley face budget had already been reached by the latter portion of that post. Anything exceeding one smiley and you end up looking like you're on something, especially on HN. Heck, even just one can be suspect!
Yes it's better to be misunderstood, than to use too many smileys.
Re: Greg
#90Earlier quoted context omitted.
I learned a hell of a lot and I recognize it has opened doors for me, but the real question is what it worth it? If you learnt even one thing from the effort, then it was worth it. Not every endeavor will bring you financial rewards, at least not directly. If you took on the effort because you loved the idea, rewards will flow via other means.
It has nothing to do with money. It's about ruining your life trying to make something work that just isn't going to work. I put my company before friends, family, and my health. It's easy after-the-fact to see that, but it's hard to know when it's happening. Possibly the most celebrated entrepreneur is Elon Musk, and I don't think there's any question he put his company before his personal life multiple times in ord…
I just went through one episode myself, so I know how it feels. For a couple of months, it was as if my skull was empty, that there was nothing there. It's an emptiness that's tough to describe.
But this is the point of life! The experience.
Now I'm onto something else.
There has to be this drive to do something different, something that you love and that will make a difference. Sometimes it takes more than one try to find that one thing.
It's the modern form of a luta continua, vitória é certa. How else would you succeed if you don't try, and fail, and fail...
That, or stick with your day job, even if it bores you to death.