What is the Secret Mountain Project? AR Rahman Collabs With OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Perplexity's Aravind to Build AI-Powered Musical Metaverse

Secret Mountain is an AI-powered musical project created by legendary composer AR Rahman. He recently teamed up with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman to advance the idea. The project combines music, storytelling, and artificial intelligence in a virtual world known as the Secret Mountain.

It features a global band composed of digital characters from diverse cultures, including India, Ireland, China, Africa, and more. Each character has a unique musical style. The story follows Luna, a young woman who escapes digital overload and discovers this magical realm.

The goal is to empower Indian creators and use AI tools to solve generational challenges. Rahman aims to demonstrate how technology can support creativity, rather than replace it. He believes music can cross borders and bring people together.

Secret Mountain is also a space for experimenting with immersive entertainment, AI-generated compositions, and virtual performances—a bold step into the future of music.

What Is the Secret Mountain Project?

Source: X

The Secret Mountain Project is AR Rahman's ambitious AI-powered musical initiative, described as a virtual global band or "Meta Band".

Its story was first unveiled in a YouTube video released on February 14, 2024, introducing a character called Luna who travels through digital chaos into a magical realm where she encounters musical beings from cultures including India, Ireland, China, and Africa.

This mystical world blends music, animation, and interactive storytelling. Conceived by Good Fellas Studio and Qyuki Digital Media, the conceptual vision paints Secret Mountain as "a canvas for the artist's creative vision … blending elements of fantasy, mythology, and technology".

How AR Rahman, Sam Altman, and Arvind Srinivas Came Together

In July 2025, AR Rahman met with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in San Francisco to explore how Secret Mountain can harness AI to empower Indian creators. Sharing a photo from the meeting, Rahman wrote:

It was a pleasure meet @sama at his office …we discussed “Secret Mountain”, our virtual global band, and to empower and uplift Indian minds to use AI tools to address generational challenges and lead the way forward.
EPI
@chatgptindia @OpenAI #arrimmersiveentertainment… pic.twitter.com/ny16ogrqFk

— A.R.Rahman (@arrahman) July 24, 2025

He also met Perplexity AI CEO Aravind (Arvind) Srinivas, who tweeted:

Great hosting @arrahman at @perplexity_ai office today with live demos of Comet browser, and his upcoming project “Secret Mountain”. pic.twitter.com/1MNiLzdGas

— Aravind Srinivas (@AravSrinivas) July 25, 2025

Additionally, OpenAI VP Srinivas Narayanan described Rahman as "a true innovator—constantly pushing boundaries" and highlighted conversations on the future of creative expression and music in the AI era.

Inside the AI‑Powered Musical Metaverse Experience

Source: X

Secret Mountain is envisioned as a musical metaverse blending human creativity with AI tools. It aims to bring together global talent — singers, mentors and musicians from India, China, Africa, Ireland, and beyond — on a unified platform to tell culturally rich musical narratives.

Rahman has emphasised that AI is meant to enhance, not replace, the creative process. He has remarked, "AI can be a starting point, but the human element, the emotional depth and creativity, remains irreplaceable."

Earlier, he had expressed concern that AI might become "a Frankenstein of … collective stolen knowledge", but he views technology as a tool now to support artistry, not overshadow it.

Each musical persona in the virtual band is deeply connected to Rahman's compositions—"his musical compositions serve as the heartbeat" of the narrative—and the project is intended as an immersive, transformative listening experience that bridges geography and storytelling.

Summary

Source: X

With the help of AI pioneers Sam Altman and Aravind Srinivas and under the creative direction of AR Rahman, Secret Mountain is a futuristic musical universe where myth meets code. The project's foundations are storytelling, intercultural cooperation, and the conviction that technology should enhance human creativity rather than take its place.