Vanity Fair’s 2026 New Establishment List

Plus: Mark Guiducci on Sam Altman

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October 5, 2026

As everyone reading this already knows, we live in evil and often stupid times. Vanity Fair attempts to make sense of them with our 2026 New Establishment list, which ranks the people currently shaping our collective future—some for the better, some for the worse. No. 1 on the list is Sam Altman, the OpenAI svengali turned avatar of the virtual insanity constantly warping and infecting our everyday lives. VF’s editorial director, Mark Guiducci, spent 90 minutes interviewing Altman on two different days, weeks apart, grilling him about a variety of topics. They include the upcoming midterm elections; whether artificial intelligence will kill all humans; what he thinks of Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Andrew Garfield (who plays Altman in Luca Guadagnino’s Artificial, a movie that premieres at the New York Film Festival tonight); and what he’s doing to protect ChatGPT users who are considering self-harm. When Mark pressed the topic of suicide, by the way, an OpenAI publicist cut in to say there were only two minutes left in the interview: “I want to be respectful, but I’d like to move on. And we talked a little bit about talking about the future and what’s coming.” How do you write an “elsewhere” section after that? Bravely, I will attempt to anyway. As part of our New Establishment package, we’ve also got profiles and conversations with a variety of colorful figures, including both Lachlan and James Murdoch. (If you find yourself confusing the two: Lachlan is Kendall Roy. James is also Kendall Roy, but liberal.) As always, more tomorrow.

HILLARY BUSIS FEATURES EDITOR

The New Establishment 2026   By Vanity Fair

Since 1994, Vanity Fair’s New Establishment list has identified the people who have defined the moment—from the Information Age to the dot-com bubble, the financial crisis to the social media tidal wave. But never in the list’s history have the stakes of individual influence felt so high. Today, a founder’s moral code can embed itself in world-defining AI systems, an influencer can command an army of acolytes, and a financier can create a sprawling hydra of investments that infiltrates every aspect of modern life. Where we once found ourselves honoring innovators, we now confront overlords. This year’s entrants hail from across industries and disciplines, from Silicon Valley to DC. The most powerful people here are also some of the most controversial, who promise to conjure both boundless wealth and economic upheaval. Read more

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NEW ESTABLISHMENT   New York, New York: Kathryn and James Murdoch Discuss Their Big Media Bet   By Lachlan Cartwright   The couple has ambitious goals to build a culture company spanning art, film, and media. They’d rather not talk about Rupert. Read more

NEW ESTABLISHMENT   How “Outsider” Ryan Murphy Became an Institution Unto Himself   By Joy Press   As a kid, the superproducer and New Establishment member found solace in the work of John Waters and Barbra Streisand. Now he presides over the most enviable stable in TV, from Love Story to Monster to American Horror Story and beyond. Here, Murphy reveals what motivates him—and how he really feels about critics. Read more

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NEW ESTABLISHMENT   Lachlan Murdoch Swims With Sharks. Actually.   By Lachlan Cartwright   The media scion and sibling vanquisher made the biggest deal in the family with his acquisition of Roku. His friends tell Lachlan Cartwright how the executive operates. Read more

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Sam Altman Sees the Future. Are We In It? (Part 1 of 2)   By Mark Guiducci   Today, Vanity Fair’s New Establishment returns for the first time in nearly a decade. As in the original, portraits by Annie Leibovitz accompany profiles of newsmakers of the moment. The list is as varied as the Kushners, the Kalshi founders, Matthieu Blazy, and Mayor Mamdani. In the top spot: OpenAI cofounder and CEO Sam Altman. In an exclusive video interview, the OpenAI CEO discusses ChatGPT and suicide prevention, safety breaches, having more kids, being portrayed by Andrew Garfield, what he really thinks of Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, and being seen as the Oppenheimer of the Artificial Age. Read more

Former Prince Andrew Takes Legal Action Against the Police Following His Arrest and Search of His Home Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor is challenging the warrants that allowed investigators to search his home in Sandringham and his former residence at Royal Lodge.

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