# Sam Yam Says He Is Joining OpenAI to Lead Creator Product

By Sonny Jang

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/people/23212
Published: 2026-09-23T11:12:10.000Z
Updated: 2026-09-23T11:38:45.000Z

Sam Yam, Patreon’s co-founder and former chief technology officer, said Sept. 23 that he is joining OpenAI to lead what he described as Creator Product, bringing two former Patreon executives into the new effort.

Yam said Drew Rowny, Patreon’s former head of product, and Shannon Ma, its former head of engineering, will join him at OpenAI. He did not disclose their start dates, compensation or reporting structure.

“I’m joining @OpenAI to lead Creator Product after over 13 years since starting @Patreon,” Yam said.

The team will work with creators and provide early access to a new set of tools, Yam said. He described the tools as potentially valuable to creators and their communities, but did not provide details about their functions or release schedule.

Patreon was founded in 2013 by musician Jack Conte and Yam as a membership and direct-payment platform for creators. The platform has more than 300,000 creators and more than 10 million paying members each month. Fans have sent more than $10 billion to creators through Patreon since its launch.

The move gives OpenAI leadership with experience in creator memberships, online communities and payments. The company’s specific plans for the new product group were not disclosed.

OpenAI’s next major scheduled company event is DevDay, set for Sept. 29 in San Francisco. The opening keynote is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET (17:00 UTC). OpenAI or Yam have not confirmed that the event will include a preview of the creator tools.