Rival AI CEOs Refuse to Hold Hands at Industry Summit Years After One Left the Other's Company
Rival AI CEOs Refuse to Hold Hands at Industry Summit Years After One Left the Other's Company
Charlotte PhillippThu, February 19, 2026 at 8:00 PM UTC
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India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi (L) takes a group photo with AI company leaders including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman (C) and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei (R).
Ludovic MARIN / AFP via Getty
Tensions between the CEOs of two AI companies, Sam Altman of OpenAI and Dario Amodei of Anthropic, seemingly came to a head at an industry summit on Feb. 19
During the India AI Impact Summit, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked each of the event's speakers to hold hands and pose for photos, but Altman and Amodei seemingly declined to do so
Amodei, a former OpenAI employee, co-founded Anthropic in 2021 with other former employees who left the company over disagreements about safety and other issues
Tensions between the CEOs of two rival AI companies seemingly came to a head at an industry summit.
During the India AI Impact Summit on Thursday, Feb. 19, in New Delhi, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked each of the event's speakers to come on stage and raise their hands together in a symbolic show of unity.
However, two CEOs, whose AI companies have been embroiled in a public rivalry, seemingly refused and raised separate fists as the other leaders joined hands.
The executives were Sam Altman of OpenAI and Dario Amodei of Anthropic.
Amodei, a former OpenAI employee, co-founded Anthropic in 2021 with other former employees who left the company over disagreements about safety, commercialization and Altman's leadership, according to Reuters.
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi (L) takes a group photo with AI company leaders including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman (C) and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei (R).
Ludovic MARIN / AFP via Getty
Altman appeared uncomfortable during the on-stage moment, while the other executive — who included Alphabet's (Google's parent company) CEO Sundar Pichai — smiled and posed for photos.
"I didn't know what was happening on stage. I wasn't sure what we were supposed to be doing," Altman later told the outlet Moneycontrol, Reuters reported. "I was sort of confused, like when [Modi] grabbed my hand and put it up, and I just wasn’t sure what we were supposed to be doing."
Tons of social media users commented on the seemingly tense interaction, joking that the "AI cold war" between OpenAI and Anthropic was raging on.
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"When you’re forced to do a group project with your opp," an investing partner at Andreessen Horowitz said in a post on X poking fun at the photo.
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The two AI companies have taken public jabs at each other in recent months, including during this year's Super Bowl.
During the commercial breaks, Anthropic comically criticized OpenAI's plans to introduce advertising inside ChatGPT for free users and ChatGPT Go subscribers in the U.S.
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi (C) takes a group photo with AI company leaders at the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi on February 19, 2026.
Ludovic MARIN / AFP via Getty
Altman spoke out after the commercials aired, calling the ads "clearly dishonest," according to CNBC.
"I guess it’s on brand for Anthropic doublespeak to use a deceptive ad to critique theoretical deceptive ads that aren’t real, but a Super Bowl ad is not where I would expect it," he said at the time.
Anthropic's chief customer officer, Paul Smith, also told CNBC that the company — which has argued that it is a safer alternative to OpenAI during its founding — was focused on growing its business rather than making "flashy headlines."
The India AI Impact Summit attracted more than $200 billion in investment pledges for AI infrastructure for India, the outlets reported.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
