By adding apps to ChatGPT, OpenAI is pushing to make the chatbot the One Ring that fills all its users’ needs. It could lead to a new, high-intent channel where marketers can potentially reach an audience of 800 million users directly inside 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 within the chat itself.
How it really works. Users can either invoke specific apps by name (e.g., “Figma, turn this sketch into a diagram”) or depend on ChatGPT’s proactive suggestions, based on the context of their queries — resembling surfacing Booking.com when discussing travel plans. This positions apps as actions, not only 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 which’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 will evolve ChatGPT the correct way, if we will let people construct into it, then possibly you shall be spending a lot of time in ChatGPT, the type of operating system,” Turley told Axios. “But it won’t feel such as you’re in a chatbot.”
Why this matters to marketers
OpenAI — which is currently burning more cash than it takes in — needs revenue for its seemingly boundless appetite for expansion. The size and unique benefits of a channel to ChatGPT users could have marketers giving OpenAI VC amounts of cash.
Among the possible benefits:
- Massive distribution in the intervening time of intent: With 800 million users and growing, developers and marketers who construct 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 within the chat as users describe problems or tasks. This allows brands to be present during decision-making moments, not only during passive browsing.
- Inline interactivity and UI control: The Apps SDK lets developers construct full-featured experiences inside ChatGPT, from dynamic forms to visual outputs. For example, Zillow can show property listings with maps directly within the chat, while Canva can generate posters on demand.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman teased an “agentic commerce protocol” for easy checkouts. While monetization details are still unclear, OpenAI has confirmed developers can have ways to generate revenue from their apps in the long run.
Last month, the corporate launched in-chat shopping for U.S. users to purchase products from Etsy sellers — its first step toward agentic commerce. It can be 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 firms like Target, Uber, Peloton and Instacart are expected soon. Developers can begin constructing today, with app publishing and reviews scheduled to launch later this 12 months. OpenAI can be creating a searchable directory — a sort 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 additional direct competition with Apple, Google and Microsoft — firms 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 inside a single, AI-mediated interface.
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