🔍 Read the full analysis: OpenAI’s Next Moves: Business Profiles, Odessia And A Reported $10B Quarter on ThorstenMeyerAI.com
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TL;DR
OpenAI launched a beta called Businesses in ChatGPT on Nov. 10, giving companies tools to manage profile details, product feeds and visibility insights, with AI agents available to some U.S. businesses. The company also acquired travel startup Odessia, while media reports put third-quarter revenue at about $10 billion and operating losses at $10.9 billion; OpenAI has not published financial statements confirming those figures.
OpenAI launched Businesses in ChatGPT in beta on Nov. 10, allowing companies to claim profiles, supply product information and track aggregated visibility, as it also acquired travel startup Odessia. Separately, media reports put OpenAI’s third-quarter revenue at about $10 billion, but also reported $10.9 billion in operating losses; the company has not released financial statements confirming those figures.
The new beta has two components, according to OpenAI’s announcement and coverage by Reuters, The Verge and TechCrunch. In the Business Hub, companies can claim and verify a profile, update business information and add product feeds with pricing and availability. The Hub provides aggregated measures including ChatGPT mentions, profile views and website clicks, as well as topics through which users discover a business. OpenAI has not publicly detailed every verification method.
Eligible U.S. e-commerce and online service businesses can also set up Business Agents. A user who encounters an agent in a ChatGPT response can open a separate, labeled conversation to ask about the business’s offerings. The business supplies the agent’s instructions and information. OpenAI said these chats are kept separate from the user’s main conversation and that it does not share users’ conversations or agent chats with businesses. Insights are shown only after activity passes unspecified thresholds.
Businesses may sponsor their agents as destinations for ChatGPT Ads, with sponsored placements labeled, according to the company’s launch details. The acquisition news came from Odessia founder Francis Davidson, who said he was joining OpenAI; an OpenAI spokesperson confirmed his hire to TechCrunch. Acquisition terms were not disclosed. The revenue figure was first reported by The Information; Bloomberg separately reported nearly 50% growth from the prior quarter, citing a person familiar with the matter. The Wall Street Journal reported that operating losses reached $10.9 billion in the quarter, citing information reported by Reuters.
OpenAI’s next moves Business tools, Odessia and reported results
OpenAI is bringing business profiles and agents into ChatGPT as reports point to strong quarterly revenue and a larger operating loss. The reported figures are not confirmed by company financial statements.
What businesses can do
The beta offers tools to manage how businesses appear in ChatGPT.
Manage a profile
Claim and verify business details, update information, and add product feeds with pricing and availability.
See aggregated insights
Track mentions, profile views, website clicks, and topics that lead users to a business.
Answer customer questions
Some eligible U.S. businesses can provide information and instructions for a separate, labeled agent chat.
How the experience works
Business information and paid destinations can shape how users explore options.
A user encounters a business in a ChatGPT response.
The user can open the business’s separate agent conversation.
Businesses may sponsor agents as destinations for labeled ChatGPT Ads.
What remains unclear
- Verification methods and insight thresholds are not fully detailed.
- Business Agent eligibility is limited to some U.S. e-commerce and online service companies.
- Odessia’s acquisition terms and strategic role were not disclosed.
- OpenAI says agent chats are separate from the main conversation.
- The company says it does not share user conversations or agent chats with businesses.
- How recommendations and paid placements affect choices is not yet established.
A commercial push with open questions
The launch adds business discovery and agent conversations to ChatGPT, while Odessia adds a separate acquisition headline.
Businesses Enter ChatGPT’s Discovery Funnel
The launch gives businesses a formal way to manage information that ChatGPT may use when responding to product and service queries. For companies, profile accuracy and product-feed maintenance could become part of how they manage online visibility, alongside established search listings and websites. The new metrics may also offer a limited view of how often ChatGPT surfaces a business, though OpenAI has not described the thresholds or full measurement methodology.
The combination of business profiles, conversational agents and sponsored placements also creates a route from discovery toward a commercial interaction. That matters to users because they may encounter company-provided information or paid destinations while researching options. OpenAI says ads are labeled and agents are separate from the main conversation; how well users recognize those distinctions and how the tools affect purchasing decisions are not yet established.
The financial reports add a different measure of the company’s position. Reported revenue growth alongside reported operating losses suggests substantial commercial activity without establishing profitability. Because the figures are media reports, not published financial statements, they should not be treated as independently verified company results.
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From Shopping Tests to Business Tools
OpenAI has been developing ways for people to find and buy products through ChatGPT. TechCrunch reported that an earlier effort involving direct checkout and commissions did not gain traction and was retired in March. The new launch instead centers on business information, product feeds and conversations with company agents; it does not, based on the launch details supplied here, establish that ChatGPT has resumed direct checkout.
The paid component builds on an existing advertising effort. OpenAI said in August that ChatGPT Ads had reached a $1 billion annualized revenue run rate. That figure was a company statement about the advertising business, not a measure of total company revenue. The Business Hub announcement describes the tools as an early step toward bringing businesses further into ChatGPT.
For the quarter, OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar discussed the period in an interview with Yahoo Finance, according to the source material. However, OpenAI has not published financial statements. The reported $10 billion revenue figure and $10.9 billion operating loss therefore remain attributed reporting rather than audited figures presented directly by the company.
Financial Figures and Safeguards
OpenAI has not published financial statements confirming the reported quarterly revenue or operating loss, and the company has not provided a full public breakdown of the figures in the supplied material. The reported figures come from media accounts with different sourcing descriptions. It is also unclear how the nearly 50% quarter-over-quarter growth figure was calculated beyond Bloomberg’s report citing a person familiar with the matter.
For the business tools, OpenAI has not specified how profile verification works across markets, what activity thresholds are required before insights appear, or how businesses will be selected as eligible for Business Agents. The material does not establish how product feeds influence ChatGPT responses or whether a listing or paid placement affects how businesses are recommended. OpenAI says sponsored placements are labeled, but further details on how users distinguish agent-provided information from other ChatGPT responses remain limited.
The Odessia acquisition’s terms and strategic role have not been disclosed. The announcement confirms Davidson’s move to OpenAI, but not the size of the deal, the startup’s products or customers, or how its technology may be used.
Rollout, Verification and Reporting
OpenAI described Businesses in ChatGPT as a beta, so the available features, eligible businesses and supported markets may change. Companies interested in the Hub will need to follow OpenAI’s verification process; existing Enterprise customers and advertisers can claim businesses through their OpenAI representative, while Shopify merchants can connect through Business Hub or Shopify’s admin, according to the launch coverage.
OpenAI has not announced a timetable for expanding Business Agents beyond eligible U.S. e-commerce and online service companies. Further details on verification, insight thresholds, advertising placement and product-feed use would help businesses and users assess how the system works in practice. The company’s next public financial disclosures, if any, may clarify the reported revenue and loss figures; the available material does not give a date for such disclosures.
Key Questions
What did OpenAI launch on Nov. 10?
OpenAI introduced Businesses in ChatGPT in beta. It includes a Business Hub for claiming profiles, updating information, adding product feeds and viewing aggregated visibility insights, plus Business Agents for some eligible U.S. companies.
Can businesses pay to appear in ChatGPT?
OpenAI says businesses can sponsor a Business Agent as the destination for ChatGPT Ads, and that sponsored placements are labeled. The launch information does not establish that every profile or recommendation can be paid for.
Did OpenAI confirm $10 billion in third-quarter revenue?
No published financial statements confirming the figure were identified in the source material. The Information reported revenue of about $10 billion; Bloomberg reported nearly 50% growth from the prior quarter, citing a person familiar with the matter.
What is known about the Odessia acquisition?
Odessia founder Francis Davidson said OpenAI acquired the startup and that he was joining the company. An OpenAI spokesperson confirmed his hire to TechCrunch. The acquisition terms and planned use of Odessia’s technology were not disclosed.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
