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Hacker Trends › “sam altman” trend

How “sam altman” trended on Hacker News

“Sam altman” was mentioned 9,663 times on Hacker News between 2007 and 2026, peaking in Nov 2023 with 889 that month.

Every month from 2007 to 2026, counting how often “sam altman” appears in Hacker News stories and comments. Each point is a live date-histogram over ~45M items, computed with Upstash Redis Search.

Total mentions
9,663
Peak month
Nov 2023 (889)
First seen
2007
2008201120142017202020232026
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What the chart shows

Sam Altman appears from 2007, first in a Y Combinator context, and accumulated 9,663 lifetime mentions. The curve peaks in November 2023 with 889 mentions, coinciding with his brief ousting from OpenAI and rapid reinstatement.

Top threads span that boardroom episode — including a former board member’s account — alongside his 2024 lawsuit from Elon Musk, critical commentary on taking him at his word, and earlier YC-era AMAs. Discussion remained active through 2026.

Top Hacker News stories about “sam altman”

  1. 1.Elon Musk sues Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, and OpenAI [pdf] 1,462 points · 1,208 comments · 2024 · discuss on HN
  2. 2.Sam Altman for President 790 points · 153 comments · 2014 · discuss on HN
  3. 3.Ex-OpenAI board member reveals what led to Sam Altman's brief ousting 785 points · 805 comments · 2024 · discuss on HN
  4. 4.It's Time to Stop Taking Sam Altman at His Word 703 points · 576 comments · 2024 · discuss on HN
  5. 5.I Am Sam Altman, President of Y Combinator. AMA 634 points · 689 comments · 2015 · discuss on HN
  6. 6.Edward Snowden Slams Sam Altman's Worldcoin: 'Don't Catalogue Eyeballs' 547 points · 298 comments · 2021 · discuss on HN
  7. 7.Sam Altman’s Manifest Destiny 487 points · 302 comments · 2016 · discuss on HN
  8. 8.TSMC execs allegedly dismissed OpenAI CEO Sam Altman as 'podcasting bro' 485 points · 559 comments · 2024 · discuss on HN
  9. 9.I Am Sam Altman, President of Y Combinator. AMA 429 points · 725 comments · 2016 · discuss on HN
  10. 10.OpenAI to remove non-profit control and give Sam Altman equity 410 points · 63 comments · 2024 · discuss on HN
  11. 11.Sam Altman is showing us who he really is 393 points · 456 comments · 2024 · discuss on HN
  12. 12.Sam Altman: Bay Area is no longer the obvious place for startups 360 points · 253 comments · 2019 · discuss on HN

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