‘Phase of refocus’: OpenAI to merge ChatGPT, Codex, and Atlas into a unified desktop ‘superapp’

OpenAI is combining its AI powered web browser, the native ChatGPT app and the Codex app into a desktop super app, as per multiple media reports. The company’s CEO of Applications, Fidji Simo confirmed the reports in a post where she highlighted the importance of avoiding distractions.

“Companies go through phases of exploration and phases of refocus; both are critical. But when new bets start to work, like we’re seeing now with Codex, it’s very important to double down on them and avoid distractions. Really glad we’re seizing this moment.” Simo wrote while reacting to a WSJ report on the new super app.

As per the report, Simo will be overseeing the chanage and focus ono helping the ChatGPT maker’s sales team market the new product. Meanwhile, OpenAI president Greg Brockman will help Simo oversee the product revamp along wih the related organization changes.

The focus of the super app will on creating ‘agentic’ AI capabilities which can work autonomously on behalf of the users to carry out taks like coding or analyzing data.

Notably, the super app initative by OpenAI came into action shortly after Simo held an all-hands meeting with the employyes eaerlir this month where she told them that the top leaders of the company including CEO Sam Altman and chief research officer Mark Chen were actively looking for areas at which to depriortize.

“We cannot miss this moment because we are distracted by side quests,” Simo told the OpenAI employees, as per WSJ, “We really have to nail productivity in general and particularly productivity on the business front.”

The ChatGPT maker had focuse

Last year, OpenAI announced an array of new products including the video-generator Sora, a web browser called Atlas, a new hardware device, and e-commerce features for ChatGPT. Altman has previously likened this approach to “betting on a series of startups” inside OpenAI, and the strategy helped burnish the company’s reputation as the pioneer of the AI era. News Corp, owner of The Wall Street Journal, has a content-licensing partnership with OpenAI.