Sam Altman has responded to criticism over comments suggesting that, from a global resource-allocation perspective, it was “terrible” for people to keep large amounts of RAM in their PCs when it could be used more efficiently in data centers. He made the remarks in an interview with YouTuber Cheeky Pint, arguing that personal computer memory is often idle while cloud resources could be used more fully amid limited supply.
The comments prompted widespread mockery and criticism online. Some users interpreted them as a suggestion that people should give up personal ownership of memory in favor of AI companies. Elon Musk also joined the reaction, posting a meme in support of people having their own RAM.
In a series of social media posts, Altman said his remarks had been taken out of context. He said he wants the world to have “tons of memory” and for people to put as much as they want in their computers, adding that he has long argued for increased memory production. In another reply, he said: “Let’s build more.” Altman also briefly changed his X display name to “Ram Altman” after a follower suggested it.
The criticism continued, particularly among PC gaming fans. The article reports that memory shortages linked to demand from the AI industry have pushed up prices for graphics cards, consoles and other PC components, and says Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo have raised console prices. It also notes that Nvidia’s RTX 5080 disappeared from its marketplace, following the RTX 5090 becoming difficult to find.
Separately, Altman posted that people should remain in control of the future and should not cede that control to superintelligence. The article says the future of data centers and AI’s effects on jobs and humanity are among the issues facing voters.
Sources: IGN.