Magazine : 
OpenAI Hits 3 Million Paying Business Users Amid Strong Enterprise Demand
- OpenAI now has over 3 million paying business users for ChatGPT, up from 2 million in February.
- New tools like 'connectors' for third-party data access and 'record mode' for meeting transcription enhance workplace productivity.
- Big companies like Morgan Stanley and Uber are using ChatGPT, with OpenAI signing up nine new enterprises weekly.
OpenAI announced that it has surpassed 3 million paying business users for ChatGPT, marking a significant milestone in the company's expansion into enterprise services. This figure, which includes subscribers to ChatGPT Enterprise, ChatGPT Team, and ChatGPT Edu, represents a 50% increase from the 2 million users reported in February.
The San Francisco-based AI giant first gained widespread recognition in late 2022 with the consumer launch of ChatGPT. Since then, it has been steadily building a robust suite of workplace-specific offerings aimed at organizations across sectors. Brad Lightcap, OpenAI’s Chief Operating Officer, highlighted the momentum in a CNBC interview, stating, "There's this really tight interconnect between the growth of ChatGPT as a consumer tool and its adoption in the enterprise and in businesses".
Currently, OpenAI supports 500 million weekly active users across its platforms. The company is on track to generate $12.7 billion in revenue this year, a dramatic leap from the $3.7 billion reported in 2023. At that time, the company anticipated an annual loss of $5 billion. Now, with accelerating business adoption and new features, OpenAI appears to be narrowing the gap between cost and profit.
Industries such as finance, healthcare, and retail are increasingly integrating ChatGPT into daily workflows. Corporate clients now include big names like Lowe’s, Morgan Stanley, and Uber, showcasing the widespread appeal of AI-powered productivity tools.
To strengthen its appeal to enterprise users, OpenAI unveiled several updates to its business offerings. One notable feature is 'connectors', which allow ChatGPT Team and Enterprise users to seamlessly access data from third-party tools like Google Drive, Dropbox, SharePoint, Box, and OneDrive. Additionally, a new 'record mode' enables users to record and transcribe meetings initially audio-only with integration capabilities that allow recordings to be turned into actionable documents via OpenAI’s Canvas tool.
Record mode is first rolling out to ChatGPT Teams users on macOS, with planned expansion to ChatGPT Plus, Pro, Enterprise, and Edu versions. These updates, OpenAI says, reflect direct feedback from enterprise clients who want ChatGPT to act more like a dynamic assistant than a siloed tool. “It can't be the intern locked in a closet. It's got to be able to see what you see”, Lightcap emphasized.
OpenAI is also seeing strong momentum in enterprise onboarding, with nine new business customers signing up each week. Lightcap believes this trend reflects a broader realization: “People are starting to really figure out that this is a part of the modern tool stack in the knowledge economy that we live in”.
With continued feature expansion and enterprise uptake, OpenAI is positioning ChatGPT not just as a productivity tool but as a staple in the future of work.
