Sam Altman Seeks To Create The Ultimate AI Super App

Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, stands at the vanguard of a technological upheaval poised to reshape our digital existence. Over the past month, Altman’s aggressive deal-making has seen the company sign chip and data centre contracts worth over $500 billion with titans such as Oracle, Nvidia, and AMD, reinforcing OpenAI’s infrastructure with unmatched financial firepower. Despite these mammoth investments, Altman shows no signs of fatigue, having also launched fresh ventures including Sora 2, a social media platform enabling users in the United States and Canada to generate AI-powered videos—an attempt to challenge TikTok’s dominance.

September saw OpenAI unveil an “Instant Checkout” function, letting users shop across five million Shopify-powered stores straight from within ChatGPT. The chatbot’s capabilities have rapidly expanded, with the integration of third-party apps such as Spotify and Zillow, and even the delivery of videos within its search results. OpenAI’s ambition is clear: to roll countless digital experiences into a single, seamless interface, streamlining vast swathes of the internet into a solitary “super app”.

ChatGPT’s meteoric rise underpins this mission. Merely three years after its November 2022 launch, its weekly user numbers have surpassed 800 million. Even with OpenAI forecasting a cash burn of $115 billion through to 2029, a recent share sale valued the firm at $500 billion—an astonishing 35 times its worth three years ago. Some analysts draw comparisons to Microsoft’s ascent with Windows, arguing OpenAI is vying to become the “operating system” for a new era dominated by artificial intelligence—centralising communication, commerce, and personal assistance within a single platform.

The stakes extend well beyond software rivals. Altman and his supporters, including high-profile investors, are convinced that the race is on for so-called artificial general intelligence—autonomous software agents able to outperform humans across cognitive tasks. Industry consensus suggests that those controlling these technologies could command profits rivalling a significant proportion of global GDP, engendering a sharp consolidation of power within the hands of a few players.

China’s WeChat offers a precedent, but regulatory scrutiny has historically prevented any singular Western platform from achieving similar reach. What now differentiates Altman’s vision is AI’s uniquely human-like interface, capable of building trust and even assuming roles as sensitive as therapist or adviser. The technology is already overtaking non-specialists across diverse professions, simplifying but also centralising the act of living online. The consequences are profound—disrupting job markets, altering social interaction, and raising questions over the societal implications of such technology.

Concerns persist as some users report negative experiences with AI, from mental health risks to the displacement of entry-level jobs. The stakes are historic, but Altman remains undeterred, viewing artificial intelligence as an evolutionary leap comparable to the advent of the transistor. The trajectory he describes envisions AI weaving itself into every facet of daily life and business, redefining not only how information is accessed but also how the digital economy itself functions.