Could Sam Altman’s OpenAI win an Emmy?
TBPN, the tech insider podcast acquired by AI giant OpenAI last month, will be putting up billboards across Los Angeles next month advertising the show’s bid to win an Emmy in the emerging media category. TBPN has a barter agreement with AdQuick, the campaign’s out-of-home advertising partner, with the show offering AdQuick’s on-air promotions in exchange for advertising inventory. An AdQuick representative said the campaign represents $800,000 worth of outdoor inventory.
The ad (see below) promotes TBPN as “the most influential show you’ve never heard of” and promotes Bari Weiss’ The Free Press.
Starting May 4, TBPN will launch a series of out-of-home ads in Los Angeles with AdQuick. AdQuick says the ads will be rolled out across “prime locations in Los Angeles,” including Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood, Mid-Wilshire, and Santa Monica and Vine. According to AdQuick, the aim is to highlight how podcasts, and TBPN in particular, are evolving into a “full-fledged cultural ecosystem.”
This partnership is a kind of circular moment. AdQuick was TBPN’s second sponsor, and now the two companies are working together to promote the brand to Emmy voters.
“AdQuick has long been a partner of TBPN, so it was easy for us to partner with them on our FYC campaign across Hollywood,” said TBPN President Dylan Abruscato. “We’re building something at the intersection of interactive, internet-native content and Hollywood tradition. As television continues to evolve, we’re excited to see the Emmy Awards recognize emerging media programs like ours.”
OpenAI, which claims to maintain TBPN’s editorial independence, bought the streaming show because it would help “create a space for real constructive conversations about the change that AI is creating,” said Fiji Simo, CEO of OpenAI’s applications division. The idea is that TBPN will help OpenAI communicate its PR message and philosophy about how AI is changing the world.
OpenAI CEO Altman said in a tweet last month, “TBPN is my favorite tech show. We want them to keep it going and do what they’re good at. I don’t expect them to go any easier on us. I’m confident they’ll do their part to make that possible, even if they make some stupid decisions at times.”
TBPN has 11 employees and began livestreaming talk shows in March 2025. The show averages about 70,000 viewers per episode across platforms, according to the Wall Street Journal. TBPN is highly profitable, claiming to have generated approximately $5 million in ad revenue in 2025 (and on track to generate more than $30 million in revenue in 2026).
Here is an image of the TBPN Emmy Awards FYC ad that will begin appearing across LA:
