Watch now (49 mins) | Sam Altman has led OpenAI from its founding as a research nonprofit in 2015 to becoming the most valuable startup in the world ten years later.
I’m hoping someone at Andreessen Horowitz sees this and reaches out.
Within the first twenty minutes of the conversation, Ben Horowitz and Sam Altman discussed whether OpenAI might eventually share some of its infrastructure — and Sam added that it would be nice if you could simply ask GPT for a cure for cancer.
That moment was so on-point I had to say something.
Please, someone, take a look at this: The BrainSIM Neurology Project.
It’s a thesis on how just 1 % of OpenAI’s future infrastructure could be adapted to simulate neurological variants and “moon-shots.” Where the best labs today manage around a hundred trials a year, this approach shows how to turn that into a billion safe simulations per year. That kind of scale could radically increase the odds of finding effective treatments or even cures for dementia, Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis, and other neurological conditions.
🧠🔬🧪 “The BrainSIM Neurology Project is a simulation-powered virtual clinic that turns today’s hundred annual neurology trials into a billion safe experiments — making breakthroughs not just possible, but probable.”
________________________________________
While we’re on the subject of health breakthroughs, here’s another initiative we’ve just started developing. After designing the GP-AI Project — which models how helping just 1 % of the population recover faster could add roughly £120 billion to the UK economy each year — we’ve begun adapting it for the U.S.
The new branch, Sienna Health USA, explores how replacing the current EHR systems could cut cancer-treatment lead time from about three months to three days, while also reducing administrative overhead — potentially saving around 30 % of America’s $4.1 trillion health-care spend.
Details are in this letter and the wider document set:
2110d1B) Sienna Health and the GP-AI Project for Deji Akiboye ℏ✨ [8 Oct 2025]
Given those two points — BrainSIM Neurology and Sienna Health USA — and since this video is about Building an AI Empire, there’s also one more piece that feels relevant:
⚛️🧠 Sienna AI – 9. Network FX – Sam Altman $1B Single User Challenge 🏆
Hook 9: Network FX — Meeting the Sam Altman $1B Challenge
This model sketches how a single individual could operate a billion-dollar AI-powered company using distributed intelligence — a concept that mirrors what Sam described about future-scale leverage.
________________________________________
Finally, if you’d like to understand the passion that ties all of this together, it’s set out here:
And yes — the homepage is still a long way from finished (about 500 hours short of how I’d like it). But the ideas above align so closely with what Sam and Ben discussed that I felt compelled to share them now.
This was such a deep dive! I particularly appreciated Sam's frankness about realizing he was wrong on vertical integration—it speaks volumes about how quickly the operational realities of scaling frontier AI demand a rethink of established tech theories. 🤔 Also, the point about Sora serving as a 'taste' of what's coming to help society co-evolve is brilliant; it reframes model releases from pure product showcases to necessary societal prep work.
Useful conversation. Particularly enjoyed the discussion around Energy, and how it is critical in powering Technology - and ultimately improving living standards + progress.
The example fits nicely into our Pillars of Power framework:
"In studying history, we recognized the Pillars of geostrategic Power are consistent across time:
- Asymmetric Technology
- Powered by low-cost and abundant Energy
- Financed by fully-controlled Money
The hegemon(s) who leads in these three key spheres controls the World Order.
The collective, self-reinforcing Pillars of Power have stood the test of time. And they provide a consistent framework for understanding the World and the decisions that shape it."
And the Trump Admin seems to understand this. From our Trump Admin piece:
"The Technology (AI) Race is The Race to establish Power and Control the Global World Order — everything else, from Energy to Money, flows from there
Technology drives the entire Trump Strategy — AI Supremacy bolsters National Security, improves Productivity, but also requires Control over the full AI stack from Semiconductors to Data Centers
Energy is the Foundational Layer — Unleashing US Energy Dominance powers AI Infrastructure and enables the reshoring of Critical Product Production
Money is now flowing directly into Technology and Energy — Trillions re-directed toward Critical Product Production (e.g., Semiconductor Fabs, Data Centers, Energy Infrastructure)"
Hi A16z,
I’m hoping someone at Andreessen Horowitz sees this and reaches out.
Within the first twenty minutes of the conversation, Ben Horowitz and Sam Altman discussed whether OpenAI might eventually share some of its infrastructure — and Sam added that it would be nice if you could simply ask GPT for a cure for cancer.
That moment was so on-point I had to say something.
Please, someone, take a look at this: The BrainSIM Neurology Project.
It’s a thesis on how just 1 % of OpenAI’s future infrastructure could be adapted to simulate neurological variants and “moon-shots.” Where the best labs today manage around a hundred trials a year, this approach shows how to turn that into a billion safe simulations per year. That kind of scale could radically increase the odds of finding effective treatments or even cures for dementia, Parkinson’s, multiple sclerosis, and other neurological conditions.
All the research is here:
https://siennaai.net/T10/BrainSIM-Neurology-Project/Introduction-&-Summary
🧠🔬🧪 “The BrainSIM Neurology Project is a simulation-powered virtual clinic that turns today’s hundred annual neurology trials into a billion safe experiments — making breakthroughs not just possible, but probable.”
________________________________________
While we’re on the subject of health breakthroughs, here’s another initiative we’ve just started developing. After designing the GP-AI Project — which models how helping just 1 % of the population recover faster could add roughly £120 billion to the UK economy each year — we’ve begun adapting it for the U.S.
The new branch, Sienna Health USA, explores how replacing the current EHR systems could cut cancer-treatment lead time from about three months to three days, while also reducing administrative overhead — potentially saving around 30 % of America’s $4.1 trillion health-care spend.
Details are in this letter and the wider document set:
2110d1B) Sienna Health and the GP-AI Project for Deji Akiboye ℏ✨ [8 Oct 2025]
https://siennaai.net/docs/GP-AI/2110d1B
Full research series:
https://siennaai.net/docs/GP-AI/#2110
________________________________________
Given those two points — BrainSIM Neurology and Sienna Health USA — and since this video is about Building an AI Empire, there’s also one more piece that feels relevant:
https://siennaai.net/2025/9-Network-FX--Sam-Altman-$1B-Single-User-Challenge-1
⚛️🧠 Sienna AI – 9. Network FX – Sam Altman $1B Single User Challenge 🏆
Hook 9: Network FX — Meeting the Sam Altman $1B Challenge
This model sketches how a single individual could operate a billion-dollar AI-powered company using distributed intelligence — a concept that mirrors what Sam described about future-scale leverage.
________________________________________
Finally, if you’d like to understand the passion that ties all of this together, it’s set out here:
https://siennaai.net/The-Economics-of-AGI/Foundation
And yes — the homepage is still a long way from finished (about 500 hours short of how I’d like it). But the ideas above align so closely with what Sam and Ben discussed that I felt compelled to share them now.
— Nick Ray Ball, Sienna AI UK
+44 7387 394 298
This was such a deep dive! I particularly appreciated Sam's frankness about realizing he was wrong on vertical integration—it speaks volumes about how quickly the operational realities of scaling frontier AI demand a rethink of established tech theories. 🤔 Also, the point about Sora serving as a 'taste' of what's coming to help society co-evolve is brilliant; it reframes model releases from pure product showcases to necessary societal prep work.
Useful conversation. Particularly enjoyed the discussion around Energy, and how it is critical in powering Technology - and ultimately improving living standards + progress.
The example fits nicely into our Pillars of Power framework:
"In studying history, we recognized the Pillars of geostrategic Power are consistent across time:
- Asymmetric Technology
- Powered by low-cost and abundant Energy
- Financed by fully-controlled Money
The hegemon(s) who leads in these three key spheres controls the World Order.
The collective, self-reinforcing Pillars of Power have stood the test of time. And they provide a consistent framework for understanding the World and the decisions that shape it."
Link to piece: https://aquavis.substack.com/p/pillars-of-power
And the Trump Admin seems to understand this. From our Trump Admin piece:
"The Technology (AI) Race is The Race to establish Power and Control the Global World Order — everything else, from Energy to Money, flows from there
Technology drives the entire Trump Strategy — AI Supremacy bolsters National Security, improves Productivity, but also requires Control over the full AI stack from Semiconductors to Data Centers
Energy is the Foundational Layer — Unleashing US Energy Dominance powers AI Infrastructure and enables the reshoring of Critical Product Production
Money is now flowing directly into Technology and Energy — Trillions re-directed toward Critical Product Production (e.g., Semiconductor Fabs, Data Centers, Energy Infrastructure)"
Link to piece: https://aquavis.substack.com/p/pop-us-and-the-trump-agenda-6-months
Loved the pod!