OpenAI has appointed Jill Hazelbaker, Uber’s president and chief corporate affairs officer, as its chief corporate affairs officer, handing her responsibility for global communications and the company’s wider positioning as AI pushes deeper into public life. The company says she will work across its leadership to improve public understanding of AI and strengthen confidence in its mission.¹

The choice is as much about Hazelbaker’s past as OpenAI’s future. Before Uber, she held senior communications and policy roles at Snap and Google, and began in U.S. political campaigns, including John McCain’s 2008 presidential run and Michael Bloomberg’s mayoral operation. At Uber, she spent roughly a decade helping steer a once crisis-prone startup through regulatory, safety and reputational challenges into a global technology platform.²

Hazelbaker framed the move as an opportunity to shape how people understand and benefit from what she called “the most consequential technology of our generation.” She argued that AI is “the most profound technological shift of our lifetime” and that building public trust has “never been more consequential.”²

OpenAI’s leadership is making the same case, though in more institutional terms: as AI becomes part of more lives, the company says its ability to communicate, engage and earn trust will matter more than ever. Greg Brockman, OpenAI’s president and co-founder, publicly welcomed Hazelbaker, saying he was “extremely excited” to work with her.Greg Brockman (gdb)³

The hire also carries a clear subtext. Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi recalled that Hazelbaker came to him in 2017 with a plan to “right the ship,” crediting her with driving key strategic moments as the company rebuilt its standing. For OpenAI, the assignment is broader: persuade governments, institutions and the public that the company can scale transformative technology without losing their confidence.²