Sam Altman says tech world 'should be united' in supporting Muslim colleagues

Sam Altman says Muslim and Palestinian tech workers have had “much less” support than their Jewish peers, including himself, during the Israel-Gaza war. Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images

• OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently discussed antisemitism and Islamophobia surrounding the Israel-Gaza war.
• He says Jewish tech workers like himself have had more support from the industry. 
• Altman added that he sees “much less of that” for his Muslim and Palestinian peers.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says Palestinian tech workers he’s spoken with don’t feel free to express themselves because they fear it may hurt their careers.

Altman took to Twitter on Thursday to share his thoughts.

“Muslim and arab (especially palestinian) colleagues in the tech community i’ve spoken with feel uncomfortable speaking about their recent experiences, often out of fear of retaliation and damaged career prospects. our industry should be united in our support of these colleagues; it is an atrocious time,” he said in a tweet Thursday. “I continue to hope for a real and lasting peace, and that in the meantime we can treat each other with empathy.”

One commenter asked, “How are the Jewish colleagues?” to which Altman responded: “I am jewish. i believe that antisemitism is a significant and growing problem in the world, and i see a lot of people in our industry sticking up for me, which i deeply appreciate. i see much less of that for muslims.”

Tech companies have struggled to manage employee discussions about the Israel-Gaza war.

Apple deleted Slack messages from employees about the war before pausing dedicated Slack channels for Muslim and Jewish employees, Business Insider’s Ashley Stewart previously reported. At Google, some employees published an open letter in November saying Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian workers at the company were subject to “hate, abuse, and retaliation” and “a double standard when it comes to freedom of expression.”

Meanwhile, Paddy Cosgrave, an Irish entrepreneur and the cofounder of Web Summit, a technology conference held in Europe each year, faced backlash for accusing Israel of war crimes against Palestinians. Attendees and companies like Intel and Stripe subsequently pulled out of the conference, and Cosgrave resigned amid mounting pressure.