So far, 2024 has been quite an eventful year of tech and artificial intelligence. To celebrate it, Time Magazine has published the Time 100 AI list. The list features the top leaders in technology from across the world. These tech leaders have made significant contributions to the field of AI and have had a profound impact on the technology sector.
Time chose its ‘Tech Leaders’ based on the significance of their work, leadership, and how their efforts shape AI’s trajectory. The list includes a diverse group of leaders from different sectors such as tech giants, startups, researchers, and advocates for AI safety and ethics.
Let’s take a look at the top 10 tech leaders in the Time 100 AI List of 2024.
Top 15 AI Leaders and Researchers to Follow & Learn in 2024
Top 10 Tech Leaders in the Time 100 AI list
Here are ten of the top tech leaders mentioned in the Time 100 AI list of 2024:
1. Sundar Pichai– CEO of Alphabet Inc.
As the CEO of Google’s parent company Alphabet, Sundar Pichai was one of the key figures responsible for integrating AI across the tech giant’s suite of products. Pichai has maintained Google’s dominance in key areas such as search, email, and mapping services, even amidst rising competition from AI startups like OpenAI. Under his leadership, Google is continuing to advance its AI capabilities, by embedding AI tools in Google Search and reinforcing its position as a leader in the AI revolution.
2. Sam Altman – CEO of OpenAI
Following the release of ChatGPT in 2022, Sam Altman’s name became synonymous with AI and LLMs. His leadership led OpenAI from a small startup to a billion-dollar global success. Despite internal challenges, including a brief ousting from his role as the CEO in 2023, Altman returned stronger and has continued to lead the company.
3. Satya Nadella – CEO of Microsoft
Satya Nadella has been with Microsoft for over three decades now. Joining in 1993 as marketing manager, Nadella is now not only the CEO of the second-most valuable company in the world but also one of the world’s leaders in tech. After entering a multi-billion dollar partnership OpenAI, Microsoft is now working on Artificial General Intelligence, or AGI, believed to be the pinnacle of AI.
4. Mark Zuckerberg – CEO of Meta
Mark Zuckerberg developed one of the biggest social media platforms of all time and was once the peak of tech success. However, it all came crashing down when Facebook faced numerous controversies regarding privacy and misinformation. As a result, Meta’s valuation went from over $1 trillion in 2021 to $240 billion in 2022. However, Zuckerberg has been in the industry for decades, so he refocused Meta’s efforts on developing the Llama series, which is on par with OpenAI’s GPTs and similar models.
5. Demis Hassabis – Co-founder and CEO of DeepMind
Demis Hassabis co-founded DeepMind in 2010 with the long-term goal of developing artificial general intelligence (AGI). Under his leadership, DeepMind has made groundbreaking strides in areas like deep reinforcement learning and protein folding. Hassabis remains focused on the responsible development of AI. Though DeepMind was acquired by Google, Hassabis is still operating as the company’s leader. Following the success of its various technologies like AlphaGo, DeepMind is now working on Project Astra, a universal AI agent.
Demis Hassabis Net Worth – Co-founder and CEO of Google Deepmind
6. Jensen Huang – CEO of NVIDIA
Thanks to the AI revolution, NVIDIA’s already powerful chips became the industry’s standards, catapulting the company to one of the three most valuable companies in the world. The company’s stock has soared in value since the launch of ChatGPT. It was Huang’s foresight in capitalizing on AI’s growing need for specialized hardware that made Nvidia indispensable to AI developers worldwide. The leather jacket-clad CEO’s name has now become synonymous with GPUs and computer chips.
Jensen Huang Net Worth 2024: Salary, House, Cars, and Other Details of Nvidia CEO
7. Andrew Feldman – CEO of Cerebras Systems
Andrew Feldman is revolutionizing AI hardware through his company, Cerebras Systems. The AI chip startup has developed the Wafer Scale Engine, a chip 57 times larger than traditional GPUs, designed to accelerate AI model training. Feldman’s work is aiming to challenge the dominance of Nvidia in AI hardware. Cerebras is working to become a leader in developing specialized AI chips for the future of computing.
Andrew Feldman Net Worth – Cerebras Systems CEO and Co-founder
8. Mustafa Suleyman – CEO of Microsoft AI
Mustafa Suleyman recently transitioned from his role at Inflection AI to head Microsoft’s new AI division. With a focus on emotionally intelligent AI, Suleyman has been a long-time advocate for responsible AI development. His leadership at Microsoft AI is expected to further the company’s influence in shaping the ethical future of AI.
Mustafa Suleyman Net Worth – New CEO of Microsoft AI Division
9. Dario Amodei – CEO of Anthropic
Dario Amodei is emerging as a significant figure in the field of AI safety and scaling. As the CEO of Anthropic, he is deeply concerned about the risks of uncontrolled AI, including the potential misuse of the technology by malicious actors. Despite these concerns, Amodei believes that it is possible to build AI safely. Under his leadership, Anthropic went from a small-scale startup to a firm valued at $18.4 billion.
Dario Amodei Net Worth, CEO of Anthropic
10. Andrej Karpathy – Founder of Eureka Labs
A co-founder of OpenAI and a former leader at Tesla, Andrej Karpathy has come back to his roots. He is now focused on improving GPT-4 and continues to play a key role in AI education through his work in simplifying complex AI topics. His background in physics and passion for teaching have earned him recognition as one of the top educators and researchers in AI.
Andrej Karpathy Net Worth: Eureka Labs, Ex – OpenAI and Tesla
The Bottom Line
AI’s development is nowhere near done. It has just begun. So, with these extraordinary people working in the field, it would be fun to see what the future holds. As AI becomes more integrated into our daily lives, their work will play a crucial role in shaping the ethical and responsible use of this technology
