OpenAI hires Hazelbaker to lead corporate affairs

Hazelbaker takes OpenAI’s corporate affairs brief

OpenAI’s appointment of Jill Hazelbaker as chief corporate affairs officer signals a broader approach to communications and institutional engagement than a conventional product-announcement role. She will lead global communications and corporate positioning, work with OpenAI’s leaders to deepen public understanding of AI, and report to co-founder and president Greg Brockman. Hazelbaker starts in early December.

The company framed the appointment around public trust, with Brockman saying communication, engagement and earning trust have “never been more important” as AI becomes more widely used. Hazelbaker described the work as consequential but acknowledged through her announcement that these are expectations rather than evidence of results already achieved.

The remit extends beyond messaging

The position covers global communications, corporate positioning, brand, social media, cultural and community partnerships, according to coverage of the appointment. It therefore places responsibility for how OpenAI presents itself to the public and the institutions shaping AI’s future within a single corporate-affairs role.

That breadth matters because OpenAI has faced public criticism over transparency, the societal and labor implications of AI, environmental concerns surrounding data centers, and policy debates ahead of the US midterm elections. Fortune reported that the communications leadership position had remained vacant for nearly a year after Hannah Wong’s departure in January 2026, with Chris Lehane leading the team in the interim.

Experience built around reputation and policy

Hazelbaker brings nearly two decades of experience across technology, communications and political work. She served as Uber’s president and chief corporate affairs officer, overseeing global communications, marketing, public policy, safety and people teams. Before Uber, she led communications and public policy at Snap and held senior communications and government-relations roles at Google.

Her background also includes political communications roles in John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign and as press secretary to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. OpenAI said the appointment reflects a commitment to developing leadership capabilities for engaging the people and institutions shaping AI’s future.

Uber loses another senior executive

Separately, Hazelbaker’s departure from Uber gives OpenAI a highly connected communications and policy executive while creating another senior opening at the ride-hailing company. Bloomberg reported that she is leaving Uber, where she had served as president and chief corporate affairs officer, to take the OpenAI role.

The immediate test is whether Hazelbaker’s start in early December produces clearer engagement with policymakers, researchers, civil-society groups and the public. No specific disclosure milestones were announced, and the appointment itself does not establish a particular policy outcome.