OpenAI expands ChatGPT into an app platform — and a new channel for marketers

By adding apps to ChatGPT, OpenAI is pushing to make the chatbot the One Ring that fills all its users’ needs. It could result in a new, high-intent channel where marketers can potentially reach an audience of 800 million users directly within their conversations.

OpenAI’s latest update integrates third-party apps directly into ChatGPT’s responses. That is a departure from its previous GPT Store model. Instead of going to separate tools, users can now access apps from brands like Spotify, Zillow, Canva, Coursera and Expedia directly in the chat itself.

How it works. Users can either invoke specific apps by name (e.g., “Figma, turn this sketch into a diagram”) or rely on ChatGPT’s proactive suggestions, based on the context of their queries — such as surfacing Booking.com when discussing travel plans. This positions apps as actions, not just tools — all inside a conversational flow.

OpenAI is moving toward positioning ChatGPT as a conversational OS. While not a literal operating system, ChatGPT is evolving into an interface through which users access and interact with software and services — one that’s contextual, persistent and adaptive.

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Nick Turley, who leads the ChatGPT product, described this future as a super assistant that becomes central to how users get things done.

“If we can evolve ChatGPT the right way, if we can let people build into it, then maybe you will be spending a lot of time in ChatGPT, the sort of operating system,” Turley told Axios. “But it won’t feel like you’re in a chatbot.”

Why this matters to marketers

OpenAI — which is currently burning more money than it takes in — needs revenue for its seemingly boundless appetite for expansion. The size and unique advantages of a channel to ChatGPT users could have marketers giving OpenAI VC amounts of money.

Among the possible advantages:

• Massive distribution at the moment of intent: With 800 million users and growing, developers and marketers who build apps on this platform gain immediate reach. Integration means their brand or service can appear precisely when it’s relevant to a user’s need. 
• Contextual discovery, not search: Unlike traditional app discovery, these tools emerge naturally in the chat as users describe problems or tasks. This allows brands to be present during decision-making moments, not just during passive browsing.
• Inline interactivity and UI control: The Apps SDK lets developers build full-featured experiences within ChatGPT, from dynamic forms to visual outputs. For example, Zillow can show property listings with maps directly in the chat, while Canva can generate posters on demand.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman teased an “agentic commerce protocol” for instant checkouts. While monetization details are still unclear, OpenAI has confirmed developers will have ways to generate revenue from their apps in the future.

Last month, the company launched in-chat shopping for U.S. users to buy products from Etsy sellers — its first step toward agentic commerce. It is also staffing up people to develop tools for ad platform integration, campaign management and real-time attribution.

What’s next: More partners, an app store and developer tools

Apps from companies like Target, Uber, Peloton and Instacart are expected soon. Developers can begin building today, with app publishing and reviews scheduled to launch later this year. OpenAI is also creating a searchable directory — a kind of ChatGPT-native app store — with higher visibility for apps that meet elevated design and functionality standards.

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The platformization of ChatGPT puts OpenAI in more direct competition with Apple, Google and Microsoft — companies that currently control the OS layer across most devices. For marketers, this evolution opens new paths to brand interaction, contextual engagement and possibly commerce — all within a single, AI-mediated interface.

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