Summary
⚈ Fidji Simo is now CEO of Applications at OpenAI, reporting to Sam Altman.
⚈ She previously led Instacart and took the company public in 2023.
⚈ Her 2025 net worth is estimated at $72.7 million, based on Instacart stock holdings.
Fidji Simo has taken on a role in tech’s most-watched company. The former Instacart CEO is now leading the Applications division at OpenAI, working directly under Sam Altman. It’s a big move at a pivotal moment: OpenAI is reshaping itself into a public benefit corporation and squaring off with Elon Musk’s xAI.
From Southern France to Silicon Valley
Simo grew up in Sète, a small town in southern France, and was the first in her family to finish high school. After studying at HEC Paris and UCLA, she kicked off her career at eBay, before joining Facebook (now Meta) in 2011.
There, she climbed fast. As Head of the Facebook app, she oversaw some of the platform’s biggest products: News Feed, Stories, Watch, Live, Marketplace, even Dating and Ads.
In 2021, Simo joined Instacart’s board, and within months, she was tapped to replace founder Apoorva Mehta as CEO. She took the company public in 2023, ending a nearly three-year drought in major tech IPOs (initial public offering). Outside of big tech, she co-founded the Metrodora Institute, a research center focused on complex chronic conditions. Additionally, she holds board seats at Shopify and OpenAI.
Most recently, in May 2025, she was named CEO of Applications at OpenAI. In this new position, she leads the teams responsible for turning the company’s research into practical tools and services. As Sam Altman put it:
“Applications brings together a group of existing business and operational teams responsible for how our research reaches and benefits the world, and Fidji is uniquely qualified to lead this group.”
Fidji Simo’s net worth
Note that this figure doesn’t take into account any private investments, board fees, her salary from OpenAI, or assets related to Metrodora, OpenAI, or Shopify. It also doesn’t factor in any personal liabilities such as mortgages or loans, so her actual net worth could be either higher or lower.
Featured image via Shutterstock.
