In a rare look behind the curtain of the world’s leading AI labs, a former OpenAI and xAI staffer has opened up about the “scary” reality of burnout. Despite the prestige of working at the forefront of Artificial Intelligence, the researcher revealed that his mental health had deteriorated to a point he could no longer ignore. He admitted that he used to dismiss such issues until they became his own daily reality.
Hieu Pham tweeted, “I have made the difficult decision to leave OpenAI. Working here and at xAI before was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I have met the best people. Not the best people in AI. Not the best people in tech. Simply the best people.”
Talking about the work he shared, “At these companies, I have helped creating extremely intelligent entities that will meaningfully improve our lives. The work makes me proud.”
The price of intensive work
Pham, in the following lines, talked about the intense work pressure and how it impacted his mental health. “But the intensive work came with a price. I cannot believe I would say this one day, but I am burnt out. All the mental health deteriorating that I used to scoff at is real, miserable, scary, and dangerous.”
What’s next?
“I am going to take a break from frontier AI labs, and will take my family to my home country Vietnam,” Pham posted, adding, “There, I will try something new, and also search for a cure for my conditions. I hope I will heal. Until then.”
How did social media react?
An individual posted, “Man, this hits hard. Burnt out at the frontier is no joke. Take care of yourself first. The work will always be there, but you won’t be if you don’t step back. I hope Vietnam brings you what you need. Rooting for you.” Another added, “There are people on LinkedIn already predicting that 2026 is the year of developer burnout due to the rate of advancement in AI. Balance in life is so important.”
A third commented, “I burned out during my doctorate, but I took the proper actions before it could affect my life. I wish you good health and speedy recovery.” A fourth wrote, “Take good care of yourself. The front lines of cutting-edge fields are always like this. I deeply empathise with your exhaustion, and thank you for your wonderful contributions.”
Earlier, Pham went viral on social media for asking a haunting AI-related question. “Today, I finally feel the existential threat that AI is posing,” the techie posted, adding, “When AI becomes overly good and disrupts everything, what will be left for humans to do? And it’s when, not if.”