penAI is getting down to business.
The model company revealed Wednesday that it now has more than 1 million global business customers, including all organizations that “actively pay OpenAI for business use” through either ChatGPT for Work or direct consumption, dubbing itself the “fastest-growing business platform in history.”
OpenAI credited its enterprise growth to its rampant consumer adoption, as user familiarity with ChatGPT has made it easier for businesses to deploy the tech with less friction. The company noted that ChatGPT for Work now boasts more than 7 million “seats,” up 40% over the last two months, and ChatGPT Enterprise has grown nine times year over year.
OpenAI has taken an acute interest in appealing to enterprise customers in recent months.
- The company pushed into the agent space in early October with the launch of AgentKit, a toolkit designed to make it easier for enterprises to deploy agents.
- And in recent weeks, it launched a tool called company knowledge, allowing ChatGPT access to a user’s software stack for more contextually aware responses.
- In September, it forged a multi-year, $100 million partnership with Databricks to integrate its models within the company’s enterprise platform.
- And on Wednesday, OpenAI announced a joint venture with Softbank, called SB OAI Japan, targeting business customers in the country with a “packaged enterprise AI solution” for corporate management and operations.
But it’s not the only AI firm with its sights set on the enterprise. Anthropic has also keenly targeted business customers, striking deals with major professional services and tech firms and tailoring its product releases to the enterprise market.
And this focus may be working in its favor: Anthropic reportedly aims to reach $70 billion in revenue by 2028 and expects to be cash flow positive. Meanwhile, OpenAI also has big revenue targets, but its losses far outweigh its projected sales. Targeting the enterprise market could help it claw back some of the cash it’s spent on its historic infrastructure buildout.