Sam Altman’s Show of Fear in November Dev Conference Should Have Been a Tip-Off of Impending Chaos

Markets EQ, today, introduced a state-of-the-art AI tonal recognition technology for evaluating and actively enhancing executive communications. The announcement, which was made from the floor of IR Magazine’s AI in IR Forum, represents the first-ever platform to make advanced tonal recognition analysis available to IR professionals and investors. As such, Markets EQ provides unprecedented insights into a management teams’ emotional and psychological states during earnings calls and other speaking engagements.

“Markets EQ is a game-changer for IROs offering real insights into how to best communicate the value, practices and opportunities of the corporate mission. New technologies, such as Markets EQ, optimize value and derisk communications as they are delivered to key stakeholders.”

For instance, a recent review of Sam Altman’s keynote speech at OpenAI’s Dev Day presentation on November 6, 2023, showed that in portions of that talk Altman assumed a tone interpreted as fearful by Markets EQ. The incident occurred when Altman was on stage with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella in what the press reported was an awkward exchange between the two and preceded nearly two weeks of chaos after Altman was terminated and then reinstated as CEO. While no deceptive behavior was detected, other unexpected emotions were demonstrable including fear and disgust.

It is just this type of nuance that Markets EQ was designed to uncover for IR teams working to optimize the value of their communications and for buy and sell-siders seeking to uncover insights into the companies they conduct research on or invest in.

According to a Harris poll, there is a “$1.2 trillion annual loss among U.S. businesses due to poor communication, or approximately $12,506 per employee every year.” IROs seeking to improve investor perceptions now have a tool to better prepare leadership with effective, evidence-based communications.

“Markets EQ represents a significant leap in the realm of investor relations,” says Sean Austin, CEO of Markets EQ. “This tool doesn’t just analyze communications; it delves into the subtleties of executive speech, revealing deeper layers of meaning and intent. For the first time, IROs and investors can gauge not just what is being said, but the underlying confidence and certainty behind these statements, ushering in a new era of transparency and sophistication in corporate communication.”

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Austin, who has been marketing tonal research to Wall Street since 2017, started his career at a start-up bought by Spotify, where he developed technologies to drive engagement according to users’ music preferences. At one point, Austin had the most followed playlist on the Spotify network.

“Tonal and transcript analysis represents the next frontier in determining consistency, authenticity, and transparency with the investment community,” said Matt Capuzzi, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. “Markets EQ is a game-changer for IROs offering real insights into how to best communicate the value, practices and opportunities of the corporate mission. New technologies, such as Markets EQ, optimize value and derisk communications as they are delivered to key stakeholders.”

Tonal analysis represents just a portion of the Markets EQ platform. In addition, Markets EQ allows IROs and investors to upload transcripts and audio files easily to evaluate data points over time. Using conversational AI technology and natural language processing, users can query content to uncover such subtleties as:

• The consistency of messaging over time to uncover the direction and velocity of the corporate goals and objectives.
• The absence of past initiatives in current messaging that warrant further consideration and evaluation.
• Competitive messaging and its impact on valuation.
• Missed opportunities to convey broader or specific messages that fuel investor interest or subdue their concerns.
• Message alignment during times of corporate stress or crisis and social change.
• Vague and nondescript language that only adds noise and confusion.
• Persistent questions that arise allowing corporate issuers to be more proactive in their communication.