Sam Altman and the Guy Running His Biggest Rival Refused to Hold Hands at a World Summit (Yes, Really)

India just hosted the biggest AI summit ever held outside of the US or Europe, and the most memorable moment had nothing to do with technology. It was two billionaire CEO's refusing to hold hands.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi gathered all the heavy hitters in one place: Sam Altman from OpenAI (the ChatGPT people), Dario Amodei from Anthropic (OpenAI's biggest rival), plus leaders from Google, Microsoft, and more. Over 250,000 people registered to attend. It was supposed to be a historic show of global AI unity.

Then came the photo op. Modi wanted the classic group shot with everyone linking hands, a symbol of cooperation. Altman and Amodei, whose companies are locked in a brutal battle to build the most powerful AI on Earth, notably refused to hold hands. The moment was caught on camera and instantly went viral.

Beyond the drama, the summit itself was actually a big deal. The US announced an AI Peace Corps program to help developing countries adopt the technology. The World Bank pledged new funding. And India positioned itself as the voice of countries that don't want AI to be just a US vs. China power struggle.

But let's be honest: everyone's going to remember the handholding thing.

As reported by NBC News.

Source: NBC News