Guest on Hobby Explorer
Sam Yam
Co-founder of Patreon, now leading Creator Product at OpenAI
About
Sam Yam co-founded Patreon, the membership platform creators use to get paid by their fans, and spent more than 13 years there. In September 2026 he joined OpenAI to lead Creator Product, bringing former Patreon leaders with him, including Drew Rowny. On Hobby Explorer he talks about how dots, OpenAI's always-on AI agent, could help creators with brand deals, and about building a creator community so creators hear about new features early.
