OpenAI reportedly plans to double workforce

OpenAI plans to increase its workforce from around 4,500 to roughly 8,000 by the end of this year or the end of 2026, as it pushes harder to sell its AI tools to businesses, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter.

Most hires are expected to go into product, engineering, research, and sales, and the company is also recruiting staff for “technical ambassadorship” roles to help customers use its products, the people said.

OpenAI has signed a new San Francisco office lease that brings its footprint in the city to over 1 million square feet as it prepares to add around 12 employees a day this year.

The hiring comes as Anthropic has gained ground with business customers, with Ramp data showing first-time AI purchasers choosing Anthropic at three times the rate of OpenAI.

🔗 Source: Reuters

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Implications, context, and why it matters.

OpenAI’s hiring surge comes amid tighter competition for enterprise deals

OpenAI helped kick off the current AI boom, yet large organizations make up a smaller slice of its revenue than at Anthropic (an AI startup best known for its Claude chatbot) 1.
As of January, enterprises contributed about 40% of OpenAI’s business, compared with roughly 80% at Anthropic 1.
By the end of 2025, Anthropic held 40% of the $37 billion enterprise AI model market, while OpenAI had 27% 2.
People with direct knowledge of the plans said OpenAI is hiring more sales staff plus “technical ambassadorship” roles to win more company accounts.

Enterprise AI competition is putting pressure on the OpenAI–Microsoft partnership

OpenAI’s broader sales drive could sharpen competition with its main partner, Microsoft 3.
OpenAI has offered 10% to 20% discounts on enterprise ChatGPT subscriptions when customers buy additional OpenAI products or commit to higher usage, which has cost Microsoft some deals 3.
Microsoft has not matched the price cuts, and instead leans on security plus compliance as reasons to choose Azure OpenAI services and Microsoft 365 Copilot 4.
Across the industry, model makers are moving “up the stack” into higher-margin software apps to help justify large infrastructure spending 2.