AI Impact Summit 2026: Social media users erupted in smiles after seeing the captured moments between OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei at the Bharat Mandapam, sparking viral memes and underscoring their rivalry.
During the ongoing AI Impact Summit 2026, Altman and Amodei were standing next to each other and appeared hesitant to join hands in a symbolic unity gesture. Inadvertently, the two CEOs raised their fists to end up breaking the chain of hands formed by others present on the global stage.
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AI Impact Summit 2026-Feud Between Altman And Amodei
The feud between OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei started after the departure of Amodei from OpenAI in the year 2020. This was after Amodei had disagreements with the OpenAI management on the safety in the context of artificial intelligence and commercialization priorities.
This resulted in him becoming the co-founder of Anthropic in 2021 as a safety-focused rival. The feud between the two has since escalated into clashes in public over market dominance, business models and narrative control in the AI industry.
Amodei, formerly OpenAI’s VP of research, left with colleagues including his sister Daniela due to concerns that OpenAI favoured rapid commercial growth over robust safety measures. Anthropic emphasizes “constitutional AI” with built-in safety principles, positioning itself against OpenAI’s faster-paced consumer-driven approach.
In early 2026, tensions peaked between the two after the Super Bowl ad of Anthropic mocked the ChatGPT ad introduction of OpenAI, promoting Altman to hit back on X saying that Anthropic caters to “rich people” while OpenAI democratizes AI for billions.
Social Media Reactions
A social media user commented, “Election mode on hai ji…”. Another user commented, “Modi ji pulled the classic Indian move—trying to force “ekta” between fierce AI rivals Sam Altman (OpenAI CEO) and Dario Amodei (Anthropic CEO).” A user commented, “Sam and Dario have no chill, man.” Another user hilariously posted, “LOLLLLLLLL Sam and Dario look like a divorced couple meeting at the court.”
