ChatGPT-maker OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s POV on kids may make you rethink having babies in 2025

While Sam Altman’s view on kids might sound optimistic — that they’ll grow up more capable thanks to AI — there’s an uncomfortable flip side.

Rising living costs, job uncertainty, shrinking disposable income, and the constant drumbeat that AI is about to change everything — it’s no surprise that many are anxious about starting a family in 2025.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says artificial intelligence will make his children more capable than previous generations, though not necessarily more intelligent. (OpenAI/ YouTube)

By Debashis Sarkar

Debashis Sarkar, Editor at HT Tech, reports on all things technology and connected lifestyle gadgets. He started off when India was yet to see its first Android smartphone and has been tracking technology intake among Indian consumers since then.

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Social media might have you believe no one’s getting married or having kids anymore — but that’s not the full picture. In this climate, the perspective of Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI (the company behind ChatGPT), on raising children in the age of AI is worth paying attention to. Especially if you’re unsure whether your future kids should even bother preparing for something like the IIT-JEE.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says artificial intelligence will make his children more capable than previous generations, though not necessarily more intelligent.

Speaking on the first episode of the OpenAI Podcast, Altman, who recently became a father, said that tools like ChatGPT will shape how his children grow up — not by competing with AI, but by learning to use it well.

“My kids will never be smarter than AI. They will grow up vastly more capable than we grew up, and able to do things that we cannot imagine. And they'll be really good at using AI,” he said.

Watch video: OpenAI podcast with Sam Altman

He said the goal is not to beat AI in intelligence, but to adapt alongside it. Altman also mentioned he used ChatGPT “constantly” in the early weeks of parenting, asking basic childcare questions. “Clearly, people have been able to take care of babies without ChatGPT for a long time. I don't know how I would have done that.”

While Altman’s view on kids might sound optimistic — that they’ll grow up more capable thanks to AI — there’s an uncomfortable flip side. What if parents aren’t equipped to prepare their kids for this future? What if they can’t afford the kind of education or training needed to compete in a world where average skills won’t cut it, and entry-level jobs are no longer easy to find?

What Altman said about kids and AI

• His children won’t outsmart AI, but will be more capable with it
• Future generations will use AI tools like second nature
• He leaned heavily on ChatGPT for parenting help
• He described himself as “extremely kid-pilled” — someone who thinks people should have more children
• Believes AI will change parenting, not replace it

AI will bring new problems, he admits

Altman acknowledged that AI could lead to social complications — especially around how people emotionally engage with machines. “There will be problems. People will develop these somewhat problematic — or, maybe, very parasocial relationships, and, well, society will have to figure out new guardrails,” he said. Still, he believes the benefits will outweigh the risks.

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Users trust ChatGPT more than they should

One of the more pointed observations Altman made was about how much trust people place in ChatGPT, despite its tendency to hallucinate. “People have a very high degree of trust in ChatGPT, which is interesting, because AI hallucinates. It should be the tech that you don't trust that much,” he added.