Skip to content

Canada's Business and Tech Newsroom

  • Professional Subscription
  • Partnerships & Advertising
  • Licensing & Syndication
Log In Subscribe
Welcome,
  • My Account
  • Log Out
  • Business
  • Tech
  • National
  • The Big Read
  • Briefings
  • Commentary
Search
Log In Subscribe
Welcome,
  • My Account
  • Log Out
News

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman talks about AI’s promise and peril on Toronto stop of world tour

Business executives, tech developers and policymakers swarmed a downtown Toronto event space Monday afternoon for an appearance by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman —but some of the best seats in the house were occupied by three little blond kids.

News

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman talks about AI’s promise and peril on Toronto stop of world tour

It’s ‘exhausting to always talk about the downsides and not the upsides,’ OpenAI CEO says

By Claire Brownell
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman speaks in Redmond, Wash. on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023. Photo: Associated Press/Stephen Brashear
May 15, 2023
A A
A Small A Medium A Large
Share

Gift

Share

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman speaks in Redmond, Wash. on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023. Photo: Associated Press/Stephen Brashear

Business executives, tech developers and policymakers swarmed a downtown Toronto event space Monday afternoon for an appearance by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman —but some of the best seats in the house were occupied by three little blond kids.

They were the children of Shopify founder and CEO Tobias Lütke, who hosted the “fireside chat”-style event with Altman at the Design Exchange. Their mother, Fiona McKean, said the kids couldn’t miss the chance to see their dad interview the hottest name in tech and business. “AI is all we talk about at the dinner table,” she said.

The Lütke kids aren’t alone. Attendees snapped up all 500 tickets to the event—presented by Elevate, an innovation-focused non-profit that organizes the eponymous annual September tech conference in Toronto—within just 30 minutes of their release Tuesday.

Related Articles

Computer Science professor Yoshua Bengio poses at his home in Montreal, Saturday, November 19, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS IMAGES/Graham Hughes

A father of AI looks on from Montreal, sick with worry

By Martin Patriquin
A photo of Cohere co-founders, Ivan Zhang, Aidan Gomez, and Nick Frosst, posing.

Cohere’s Aidan Gomez on commercializing generative AI, and the moment the public tuned in

By Murad Hemmadi

All eyes have been on Altman since the November launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence chatbot that can write code, pen poetry, pass legal exams and facilitate medical diagnoses. Since its release, the hot topic at dinner tables around the globe has been predicting how it will change the world—from mass unemployment to a utopian future of longevity and abundance to all-out apocalypse.

ChatGPT is already shaking up Big Tech. Microsoft, which has reportedly invested US$13 billion in OpenAI, beat rival Google to market with an OpenAI-powered chatbot in February and is outperforming in search traffic growth.

Gift the full article

Altman’s stop in Toronto is part of a world tour, on which he’s “hoping to” give talks and meet with policymakers to answer questions about the potential impact of what he’s unleashed. At the Design Exchange, he played his part as ambassador for a brighter future. Dressed in a blue checked blazer and olive slacks on a stage lit in pink, he exuded positivity when Lütke asked about AI’s potential to make life better. “It’s a little bit exhausting to always talk about the downsides and not the upsides,” he said.

“The revolution has been launched. I’m so excited about it.”

#artificial intelligence #ChatGPT #OpenAI #Sam Altman #Shopify #Tobi Lütke

Sponsored Content

The road to risk-smart regulation

By Deborah Aarts

Why cybersecurity needs to match pace with AI

By Jessica Aftimus Rosa

How to shift your workforce from AI experimentation to adoption

By Jessica Aftimus Rosa
Paid promotional content

Loading...

Thanks for sharing!

You have shared 5 articles this month and reached the maximum amount of shares available.

Close
This account has reached its share limit.

If you would like to purchase a sharing license please contact The Logic support at [email protected].

Close
Want to share this article?

Upgrade to all-access now

Close
Gift the full article!

You have gifted 0 article(s) this month and have 5 remaining.

Copy link and gift
Copy Link
Email to a friend
Send Email
Gift on Social Media

Recipients will be able to read the full text of the article after submitting their email address. They will not have access to other articles or subscriber benefits.

Photo: Associated Press/Stephen Brashear

Most Popular This Week

A side shot of Annie Andrews passing a cluster of supporters with a hand outstretched and a joyful look on her face.
News

What the Democrats’ midterm sweep means for Canadian business

By Joanna Smith
An image of Prime Minister Mark Carney, standing in front of a microphone and speaking. He is wearing a blue suit and tie, while looking away from the camera. He is standing in front of a dark background. The Cohere logo is visible in the background.
News

Conservatives challenge Ottawa to justify its $1.6B Cohere investment

By Catherine McIntyre
U.S. President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in suits, sitting and talking in the Oval Office with gold decor.
News

Canadians have given up on the old America. They feel fine about it

By David Reevely
A logo that reads AI in blue lettering against a light yellow background.
News

BDC launches programs to test Canadian AI tools in small businesses

By Catherine McIntyre

In-depth, agenda-setting reporting

Great journalism delivered straight to your inbox.

A new condo construction site is seen in downtown Toronto on Thursday, May 25, 2023.
News

Big banks and developers urge Ottawa to halt private capital’s retreat from housing

By Chaimae Chouiekh

Briefing

Canadian venture funding stagnates as deal count keeps shrinking

By Catherine McIntyre   |   Nov 10, 2026 | 6:00 AM ET

Stellantis goes ahead with sale of Ontario auto plant to defence company Roshel

By Joanna Smith   |   Nov 9, 2026 | 4:42 PM ET

Nvidia sheds billions in value amid probe of Huang’s affair with suspected Chinese spy

By Catherine McIntyre   |   Nov 9, 2026 | 4:19 PM ET

Best business newsletter in Canada

Get up to speed in minutes with insights and analysis on the most important stories of the day, every weekday.

Exclusive events

See the bigger picture with reporters and industry experts in subscriber-exclusive events.

Membership in The Logic Council

Membership provides access to our popular Slack channel, participation in subscriber surveys and invitations to exclusive events with our journalists and special guests.

Recent Popular Stories

News

Wealthsimple launches AI assistant as Canada’s big banks block third-party agents

By Chaimae Chouiekh   |   Nov 5, 2026
News

Former Ciena employee claims she was fired for reporting sexual assault by executive

By Catherine McIntyre   |   Nov 3, 2026
An exterior of a five-storey office building with two Canadian flags out front. Above the entrance is a four-storey window with Ciena's logotype written sideways.
Commentary

Carmichael: Carney and Champagne’s budget sends the bond market a message

By Kevin Carmichael   |   Nov 5, 2026
An image of Mark Carney against a light and dark background.
News

Ottawa extends open banking principles to other sectors—but continues to delay original framework

By Claire Brownell   |   Nov 5, 2026
News

Canada is buying military gear for a world where ‘pretty much everything’ changed

By David Reevely   |   Nov 2, 2026
Three people, wearing business clothing and red poppy pins, sit on chairs on a stage. The person in the middle is speaking. A blue background is visible behind them.
News

Conservatives challenge Ottawa to justify its $1.6B Cohere investment

By Catherine McIntyre   |   Nov 2, 2026
An image of Prime Minister Mark Carney, standing in front of a microphone and speaking. He is wearing a blue suit and tie, while looking away from the camera. He is standing in front of a dark background. The Cohere logo is visible in the background.

Canada's most influential executives and policymakers are reading The Logic

  • CPP Investments
  • Sun Life Financial
  • C100
  • Amazon
  • Telus
  • Mastercard
  • bdc
  • Shopify
  • Rogers
  • RBC
  • General Motors
  • MaRS
  • Government of Canada
  • Uber
  • Loblaw Companies Limited
logic-logo

Canada's Business and Tech Newsroom

100% human-crafted journalism

Newsroom

  • News Tips
  • AI Policy
  • Editorial Disclosures
  • Story Pitches

Company

  • About Us
  • Terms of Service
  • Privacy Statement
  • Corporate Information

Contact

  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • FAQs
  • Work at The Logic

© 2026 The Logic Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Trusted by leaders

Error

Account creation failed.

Please email us at [email protected].

Create Account

[wppb-register form_name=”cozmo-registration-form-for-modal”]

I do have an account
Login
or

[wppb-login]

I don’t have an account