OpenAI’s $1 trillion vision: Altman’s grand bet on the future of artificial intelligence

OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, is planning a dramatic expansion that could redefine the global artificial intelligence landscape. According to a Financial Times report, the company led by Sam Altman has formulated an ambitious five-year plan to fund the more than $1 trillion it has pledged to spend, an unprecedented sum aimed at financing the next generation of computing infrastructure for AI models.

At the same time, OpenAI announced a strategic partnership with Walmart, marking its first significant move into the world of online commerce.

The five-year plan is designed to enable OpenAI to meet its vast commitments to partners including Nvidia, Oracle, AMD, and Broadcom, from whom it has pledged to purchase computing power worth more than $1 trillion over the next decade. To meet these obligations, the company is developing a new business model built on a combination of capital raising, debt financing, industrial collaboration, and new commercial products.

OpenAI plans to broaden its product portfolio and offer dedicated services for governments and enterprises, alongside expanding its video-generation platforms such as Sora and developing independent AI agents capable of performing complex tasks for users. The company is also exploring an entry into hardware, working with former Apple designer Jony Ive to create an AI-based personal assistant device that will allow natural, voice-driven interaction with ChatGPT.

On the infrastructure side, OpenAI is promoting Project Stargate, a proposed global network of data centers designed to provide the massive computing power required to run its advanced AI models. The company intends to “leverage other people's balance sheets,” relying on the capital and infrastructure of its partners rather than shouldering the full cost alone.

The initiative comes amid one of the industry’s most aggressive spending periods. OpenAI reportedly lost about $8 billion in the first half of the year, even as it doubled annual revenue to roughly $13 billion. Around 70% of this revenue comes from ChatGPT Plus subscriptions priced at $20 per month. Of the platform’s estimated 800 million regular users, only 5% currently pay, but the company aims to double that rate by offering discounted versions in India, Brazil, and the Philippines.

OpenAI has also begun earning commissions on purchases made through its new ChatGPT Checkout feature and is testing limited forms of targeted advertising, which Altman has said will be “adopted carefully and transparently.”

Despite the company’s rising revenue, profitability is not an immediate goal, according to Altman. “Making the company profitable is not in my top ten concerns,” he said recently. His strategy, he added, is to secure a decisive technological lead before balancing the books, on the assumption that growing competition in the chip market will lower computing costs in the years ahead.

The collaboration with Walmart demonstrates how OpenAI intends to convert artificial intelligence into a direct economic engine. Under the agreement, Walmart customers and Sam’s Club members will be able to purchase products directly through a ChatGPT conversation using the Instant Checkout function. Consumers will receive personalized, real-time offers and complete their purchases in a single dialogue.

OpenAI will provide the AI interface and receive a percentage of each sale, while Walmart will handle logistics and fulfillment.

For Walmart, the partnership marks a strategic step toward transforming shopping from a search-based experience into a conversational one, where AI identifies a consumer’s needs and delivers solutions in real time. The approach reflects a shift to AI-first commerce, in which an entire transaction - from discovery to checkout - occurs within a single interaction.

The market responded enthusiastically: on the day the partnership was announced, Walmart’s stock jumped 5% to a record $107.21 per share, amid expectations that ChatGPT integration would boost its digital revenue and strengthen its position against Amazon.

Still, integrating artificial intelligence into e-commerce is complex. It requires deep coordination across information systems, inventory, payments, shipping, and data privacy. AI must not only recommend products but also grasp context, personal preferences, and financial limits, all without breaching user privacy or eroding trust. Any technical glitch, data error, or privacy breach could undermine consumer confidence.

Moreover, U.S. and European privacy regulations impose strict standards on digital services, and OpenAI will need to meet them if it hopes to maintain its image as a responsible as well as innovative platform.

At the same time, Altman continues to push the boundaries of AI and content. This week, he announced via X that by the end of the year, ChatGPT will allow the creation of erotic and emotional content for verified users over 18. “We believe that adults should be treated like adults,” Altman wrote, promising strict oversight and safeguards to prevent exploitation or abuse.

The new feature will enable verified users to engage in intimate or romantic conversations with ChatGPT, part of a broader effort to expand the platform’s use cases and reduce user churn. OpenAI emphasized that the system will filter illegal or harmful material and operate under a controlled, monitored framework.

Critics, however, warn that the decision could tarnish OpenAI’s image and erode public trust, even as supporters view it as a natural evolution, recognition that artificial intelligence is becoming not only functional but emotional.