Midjourney vs OpenAI: Founders, CEOs and History
Midjourney was founded in 2021 by David Holz and is led by David Holz. OpenAI was founded in 2015 by Sam Altman, Elon Musk, Greg Brockman and is led by Sam Altman.
Company facts
Midjourney
- Founded
- 2021
- Headquarters
- San Francisco, California, United States
- Current CEO
- David Holz
- Employees
- 100
OpenAI
- Founded
- 2015
- Headquarters
- San Francisco, California, United States
- Current CEO
- Sam Altman
- Employees
- 4,500
Founders
Midjourney
David Holz
David Holz is the founder and CEO of Midjourney, Inc. He previously co-founded Leap Motion in 2010 and served as its CTO, then started Midjourney in 2021 as a self-funded research lab.
OpenAI
Sam Altman
Sam Altman co-chaired OpenAI at its 2015 founding and became CEO in 2019. He negotiated the Microsoft partnership, oversaw the ChatGPT launch in 2022, survived the board's brief attempt to remove him in November 2023, and led the October 2025 recapitalization…
Elon Musk
Elon Musk was an early co-chair and funder of OpenAI and left its board in February 2018. He later founded rival xAI in 2023 and sued OpenAI, Sam Altman and Greg Brockman in 2024, arguing the company abandoned its nonprofit mission.
Greg Brockman
Greg Brockman left his role as Stripe CTO to co-found OpenAI in 2015 and serves as president.
Ilya Sutskever
Ilya Sutskever was OpenAI's chief scientist from 2015 to May 2024, overseeing work behind the GPT series and ChatGPT. He voted to remove Sam Altman in November 2023, then said he regretted it. After leaving OpenAI he co-founded Safe Superintelligence Inc.
CEOs and their tenures
Midjourney
- David Holz2021–present
Founder & Chief Executive Officer
Founded Midjourney in 2021 after co-founding Leap Motion; has run it as a self-funded lab with no venture capital, overseeing the V1-V8 model line and the 2025 launch of Video V1.
Source - Philip Rosedale2022–present
Advisor
Provided critical early structural advice and scaled governance consulting for the rapidly growing generative AI image synthesis platform.
Source
OpenAI
- Greg Brockman2015–present
President and Co-founder
Former Stripe CTO; returned from a 2024 sabbatical and remains president.
Source - Mira Murati2018–2024
Chief Technology Officer and interim CEO (former)
Served as interim CEO for two days in November 2023; left OpenAI in 2024.
Source - Sam Altman2019–present
Chief Executive Officer
Co-founder and CEO who turned OpenAI from a research lab into a consumer and enterprise platform; briefly removed by the board in November 2023 and reinstated days later.
Source - Fidji Simo2025–2026
CEO of Applications (former)
Former Instacart CEO who ran ChatGPT and other applications; stepped down from the full-time role in July 2026 for health reasons and stayed on as an adviser.
Source - Vijaye Raji2025–present
CTO of Applications
Statsig founder who joined via the 2025 acquisition to head product engineering for ChatGPT and Codex.
Source
Timeline: Midjourney and OpenAI side by side
2015OpenAI
OpenAI founded as a nonprofit
OpenAI launched in December 2015 as a nonprofit AI research lab.
2019OpenAI
Capped-profit entity and Microsoft deal
OpenAI created a capped-profit subsidiary and received a $1 billion investment from Microsoft.
2021Midjourney
Midjourney Founded in San Francisco by David Holz
Leap Motion co-founder David Holz founded Midjourney as a self-funded independent AI research lab.
2022Midjourney
Launches Midjourney V1 on Discord & Goes Viral Globally
Debuted text-to-image synthesis inside Discord, creating a worldwide spectator co-creation phenomenon.
2022Midjourney
Wins Colorado State Fair Digital Art Competition & Stirs Global Debate
An artwork generated with Midjourney ('Théâtre D'opéra Spatial') won first prize, sparking global debates on AI in fine art.
2022Midjourney
Holz says Midjourney is profitable
In August 2022 Holz said the company was already profitable without outside funding.
2022OpenAI
ChatGPT launch
ChatGPT launched on November 30, 2022 and reached 100 million users faster than any prior consumer app.
2023Midjourney
Releases Midjourney V5 & The Viral Pope Puffer Jacket Moment
Launched photorealistic V5; viral Pope image demonstrated AI's alarming realism, sparking global deepfake debates.
2023Midjourney
V6 and growing Discord community
Revenue was estimated by outside analysts near $200 million in 2023; Midjourney does not disclose figures.
2023OpenAI
Board crisis
The nonprofit board removed Sam Altman in November 2023; he returned as CEO within days and the board was rebuilt.
2024Midjourney
Launches Midjourney Web Studio & Consistency Parameters (--cref / --sref)
Expanded beyond Discord into a dedicated web canvas studio and introduced character consistency for storytellers.
2025Midjourney
Video V1 launch and studio lawsuits
Midjourney launched Video V1 in June 2025; Disney and Universal sued the same month, and Warner Bros. Discovery followed in September.
2025OpenAI
Acquired Jony Ive's io
OpenAI agreed to buy hardware startup io for just under $6.5 billion in an all-equity deal.
2025OpenAI
Recapitalization into OpenAI Group PBC
In October 2025 the for-profit became a public benefit corporation controlled by the OpenAI Foundation; Microsoft received about 27%.
2026Midjourney
V8 series released
V8 alpha launched March 17, 2026; V8.2 became the default model on July 24, 2026.
2026OpenAI
$122B funding round
OpenAI closed $122 billion in committed capital at an $852 billion post-money valuation on March 31, 2026.
2026OpenAI
Run rate nears $70B
Axios reported in September 2026 that annual recurring revenue was nearing $70 billion.
Acquisitions
Midjourney
No verified acquisitions are listed.
OpenAI
- io Products2025$6.5B
- Statsig2025$1.1B
- Rockset2024Undisclosed
- Global Illumination2023Undisclosed
Questions about Midjourney vs OpenAI
Who is the CEO of Midjourney, Inc. and OpenAI?
Midjourney, Inc. is led by David Holz and OpenAI is led by Sam Altman. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Midjourney, Inc. founded vs OpenAI?
OpenAI was founded in 2015 — 6 years before Midjourney, Inc., which was founded in 2021. OpenAI's longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Midjourney, Inc..
How many employees does Midjourney, Inc. have compared to OpenAI?
Midjourney, Inc. employs approximately 100 people, while OpenAI employs approximately 4,500. OpenAI has the larger workforce at 4,500 employees, compared to Midjourney, Inc.'s 100. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Midjourney, Inc. and OpenAI headquartered?
Both Midjourney, Inc. and OpenAI are headquartered in United States, meaning they operate under the same primary regulatory and tax environment.
Who founded Midjourney, Inc. and OpenAI?
Midjourney, Inc. was founded by David Holz. OpenAI was founded by Sam Altman, Elon Musk, Greg Brockman, Ilya Sutskever.
Which company has a longer operating history — Midjourney, Inc. or OpenAI?
OpenAI has been operating for approximately 11 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Midjourney, Inc. has been in operation for around 5 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Midjourney vs OpenAI overview