Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, has declared a 'code red' at the company to improve ChatGPT as the chatbot faces intense competition from rivals, particularly Google's new Gemini 3 model. According to a report by the Information, Altman told staff in an internal memo that 'we are at a critical time for ChatGPT.'
OpenAI has been rattled by Gemini 3's success, which has outperformed rivals on various benchmarks. Altman warned employees last month that the launch could create 'temporary economic headwinds' and that 'the vibes out there to be rough for a bit.' Marc Benioff, chief executive of Salesforce, wrote on X that he had switched allegiance to Gemini 3, calling the leap 'insane' and stating he was 'not going back.'
In response, OpenAI is devoting more internal resources to improving ChatGPT and delaying a foray into advertising. Nick Turley, head of ChatGPT, marked the chatbot's third birthday by pledging to 'keep making ChatGPT more capable, continue growing, and expand access around the world.'
Despite lacking the cash flow of rivals like Google, Meta, and Amazon, OpenAI has received substantial funding from SoftBank and Microsoft. The company, valued at $500bn, expects annual revenues of over $20bn this year, with Altman projecting growth to 'hundreds of billions' by 2030. However, OpenAI is loss-making and has committed to spending $1.4tn on datacentre costs over the next eight years.
Meanwhile, Apple has appointed Amar Subramanya, a former Microsoft and Google executive, as its new vice-president of AI, replacing John Giannandrea. Apple has been slow to add AI features to its products, with improvements to Siri delayed until 2026.
