OpenAI is preparing a major overhaul of ChatGPT: according to the Financial Times, the company plans not merely to upgrade the chatbot but to turn it into a multifunctional platform combining code-writing tools, AI agents and third-party services.
The move comes as OpenAI faces growing pressure to increase revenues. The company is reportedly preparing for a potential initial public offering (IPO) later this year, and investors are expecting not only technological promise but convincing business results. Although ChatGPT has attracted nearly one billion users since launch, the majority still use the service for free, creating a need for a more monetizable product mix.
Emphasis on AI agents and Codex
Company leaders believe the future of AI lies less in question-answering chatbots and more in so-called AI agents: systems that execute concrete tasks on behalf of users, such as booking travel, managing calendars, creating documents or carrying out software development work.
A key element of the redesign is putting the Codex coding product front and center. Codex can generate program code and build software from simple instructions; its user base has grown sixfold since the start of this year and now exceeds five million weekly active users. Most Codex customers pay for the service, making it a more attractive business model for OpenAI than traditional chatbot usage.
Changes arriving on web and mobile interfaces
According to the Financial Times, the first signs of the overhaul should appear on ChatGPT’s web and mobile interfaces in the coming weeks: the system will more frequently surface coding features, image-generation options and third-party partner applications, such as those from Canva and Booking.com. Over time, OpenAI aims for the AI to automatically infer user intentions and offer appropriate services without separate menus or explicit suggestions.
Strategic alignment and competition
This strategy brings OpenAI closer to the approach of its major rival, Anthropic, which from the start emphasized enterprise customers and revenue generation. Both companies now appear to be pursuing corporate markets and preparing for public listings. OpenAI executives say the ultimate objective is a universal AI assistant capable of handling most personal and work-related tasks, blurring the lines between chatbots, search engines, coding tools and other software.
If implemented as reported, the planned changes could substantially alter ChatGPT’s role, shifting the product away from a classic chatbot toward a platform designed to nudge users toward higher-revenue services.
