OpenAI Acquires Statsig for $1.1 Billion, Names Vijaye Raji CTO of Applications

OpenAI has announced the acquisition of Statsig, a product experimentation platform, in an all-stock deal valued at $1.1 billion. Concurrently, Statsig founder and CEO, Vijaye Raji, will join OpenAI as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Applications. This strategic move aims to bolster OpenAI's capacity for rapid product development and experimentation, particularly for its flagship AI applications like ChatGPT and Codex.

The acquisition underscores OpenAI's commitment to scaling its applications business, which is led by Fidji Simo, CEO of Applications. Raji will report directly to Simo and will oversee product engineering for key AI tools, including infrastructure and integrity. OpenAI stated that bringing Statsig's capabilities in-house will accelerate experimentation across its applications organization, leading to more responsive and refined user experiences.

Statsig, founded in 2021, specializes in A/B testing, feature flagging, and real-time decisioning, tools crucial for data-informed product development. "As part of this transition, we’re acquiring Statsig, one of the most trusted experimentation platforms in the industry," OpenAI announced on social media. The platform has already been utilized internally by OpenAI, demonstrating its value in the company's development processes.

Vijaye Raji brings extensive experience to his new role, having spent over a decade in leadership positions at Meta (formerly Facebook) before founding Statsig. At Meta, he led engineering for News Feed and later Ads & Business Products, overseeing significant growth and large-scale consumer engineering. His background is expected to be instrumental in scaling OpenAI's next generation of products.

".@vijayeraji, founder & CEO of Statsig, will join OpenAI as CTO of Applications to lead engineering for ChatGPT & Codex, following the acquisition of Statsig. This expands our Applications leadership as we build safe, useful AI products at scale," OpenAI stated in its tweet.

The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval. Statsig is expected to continue operating independently from its Seattle office, serving its existing customer base, with a measured approach to future integration into OpenAI's operations. This deal marks one of OpenAI's largest acquisitions to date, signaling its aggressive push to enhance its product development capabilities amid intense competition in the AI sector.