New Delhi, Aug. 2 -- OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman has said one of the most valuable lessons he learned from Silicon Valley's leading entrepreneurs and investors is to become comfortable with standing apart from the crowd when making investment decisions.

"The thing I really learned from Peter Thiel and Paul Graham, both in two different ways, which is that the very best companies, the very best investment opportunities are almost never the ones that look really popular," Altman said during a recent episode of the "Invest Like The Best" podcast.

According to Altman, following popular opinion may work up to a certain point, but the biggest opportunities often emerge when investors are willing to support companies that appear ...