Kate Rouch has stepped down as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of OpenAI, citing the need to prioritise her recovery after being diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer.
She announced her departure via her LinkedIn.
Rouch revealed that she was diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer around a year and a half ago, shortly after stepping into the CMO role at OpenAI. Despite undergoing intensive treatment during this period, she continued to lead the company’s marketing function. In her LinkedIn post, she stated that she had reached her limits, adding, “At a certain point, you have to be honest about your limits. I’ve reached mine.”
Rouch plans to return to a different, more narrowly scoped role when her health allows. The company is searching for a new CMO. In the interim, Gary will step in to help lead the function and recruit a successor.
Prior to OpenAI, Rouch served as Chief Marketing Officer at Coinbase from August 2021 to December 2024, and spent over a decade at Meta between May 2010 to August 2021, where she was Vice President and Global Head of Brand and Product Marketing. She has also worked as a consultant at The Bridgespan Group, working across non-profits, government, and public policy from 2006 to 2010.
