OpenAI Hires Uber President Jill Hazelbaker as Chief Corporate Affairs Officer

OpenAI hired Uber President Jill Hazelbaker as its chief corporate affairs officer on November 3, handing a veteran of corporate turnarounds broad authority over how the AI developer presents itself to the public, regulators and policymakers. The appointment touches a core people-process decision: the company now has two senior executives in external affairs, and it has not explained how their responsibilities divide.

Hazelbaker's portfolio covers global communications and corporate positioning, extending to reputation management, corporate brand, social media, and cultural and community partnerships. She will report to OpenAI co-founder and President Greg Brockman. What the announcement did not say is whether she answers to, or sits alongside, Chris Lehane, the company's existing chief global affairs officer — an omission worth noting for any HR leader studying how growing companies structure senior overlap.

What changed at OpenAI?

The role is new. OpenAI already employs Lehane, a veteran Democratic operative who holds the title of chief global affairs officer and runs global policy and government affairs. The company did not specify how the two roles will split responsibilities.

• Chief corporate affairs officer — new position, held by Hazelbaker; scope covers global communications, reputation, corporate brand, social media and community partnerships.
• Chief global affairs officer — held by Lehane; scope covers global policy and government affairs.
• Reporting line — Hazelbaker reports to Brockman, the company's president.

The overlap is unusual for a company of OpenAI's size. It reflects the breadth of the task: an industry leader in generative AI that is simultaneously courting enterprise customers, negotiating with governments and defending its reputation in a polarized public debate.

The timing matters. The European Union's AI Act has begun imposing obligations on providers of general-purpose AI models. OpenAI also maintains an active federal lobbying presence in Washington, with lobbyists registered to work on its behalf in 2025 and a 2026 federal lobbying profile on file. For employers watching how AI vendors manage regulatory exposure, the hire signals that OpenAI treats reputation management as deserving the same seniority as engineering and policy.

Who is Jill Hazelbaker?

Hazelbaker spent a decade at Uber, most recently as president and chief corporate affairs officer, overseeing communications, marketing, public policy, safety and people operations. Uber promoted her to that expanded role in May.

Her scope at Uber is notable: it included people operations, meaning she carried HR-adjacent responsibility at a company of significant scale. That background separates her from a pure communications hire.

She is an Oregon native and a University of Oregon graduate who began her career in politics. She served as national communications director and chief spokesperson for Senator John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign, and as press secretary to then-New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. She later led communications and public policy at Snap and held senior roles at Google, including oversight of corporate communications worldwide and government relations in Europe.

What did the principals say?

Brockman framed the hire around public trust. "As AI becomes part of more people's lives, how we communicate, engage, and earn public trust has never been more important," he said in a statement. He described Hazelbaker as bringing "exceptional judgment, seasoned leadership, and a deep understanding of the opportunities and responsibilities that come with building technology at global scale."

Hazelbaker described the stakes in expansive terms. "The stakes are enormous, the possibilities are extraordinary, and the work of building public trust has never been more consequential," she said.

Uber Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi credited her with helping stabilize the ride-hailing company after he arrived in 2017. He recalled that one of his first calls after joining was with Hazelbaker, who arrived with a clear plan for rebuilding the company's reputation. "It was trademark Jill: operating with exceptional clarity, integrity, and energy," he said, adding that she had been "a deeply trusted adviser to me and many others."

Takeaway: the endorsements are strong, but none of them address how two senior external-affairs executives will coexist.

What does the move mean for Uber?

The departure removes one of Uber's most senior executives and a central figure in its post-2017 turnaround. The company has not named a successor. Investors will watch whether the responsibilities are redistributed across the team or consolidated under Khosrowshahi.

A decade-long executive leaving without a named successor is itself a succession-planning signal. Uber has not publicly outlined an interim structure.

Why should HR leaders care?

The move underscores a broader talent flow from mature consumer platforms into AI developers, which are competing for executives who can manage regulatory relationships and public trust while scaling products. Hazelbaker's political and corporate background fits that demand.

There is a caveat. Her arrival adds a second senior voice on policy matters at a company still defining how its external affairs operation should be structured. OpenAI has cycled through high-profile communications and policy staff in recent years while its products moved from research demos to services used by hundreds of millions of people, drawing scrutiny from lawmakers in Brussels and Washington alike.

The unresolved question — who owns what between Hazelbaker and Lehane — is the one OpenAI declined to answer, and it is the one that will determine whether this hire reduces confusion or adds to it.