From his birth in a family of fishermen to Number 2 of one of the leaders of technology in the world: it is the dazzling destiny of the Franco-American Fidji Simo. Having worked with prestigious companies, the businesswoman has just been appointed general manager of applications at OpenAI, the American artificial intelligence company behind ChatGPT.
Born in Sète in the Occitanie region, Fidji Simo was very far from the world of technology in her youth. While her family worked in fishing and her mother ran a fashion boutique, the young woman quickly distinguished herself by obtaining her baccalaureate at 16 years old. Integrated at HEC, she does internships at Ebay, in France, before leaving for the American continent.
From Sète to Facebook
Then 26 years old, Fidji Simo joins a company that could not be more flourishing and popular in 2011: Facebook. Integrated into marketing teams, she quickly climbs the ladder from Mobile Advertising Manager to Vice-President in charge of video, games and mobile advertising.
2016 marks one of the first major turning points in his career. Taken over from a certain impostor syndrome, Fidji Simo participates in the launch of Facebook Live and the autoplay function. “Fiji is an incredible leader. From our meeting eight years ago, I understood that she was one of those rare leaders who both have an overall vision and who go to the heart of details to carry out their mission,” greeted her former superior Sheryl Sanberg in an article by Marie-Claire. In 2019, she became director of the Facebook application.
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Featured photo : © Instagram Fidji Simo
