Last month, OpenAI – the parent company of LLM ChatGPT – announced it was launching a consultancy arm, reportedly kitted with engineers and enterprise-grade AI models, to advise businesses on getting the most out of its products.
So far, the AI giant has primarily relied on income from its tiered ChatGPT subscription service. The consultancy arm offers a significant new stream of revenue for OpenAI, with packages starting at $10m.
Undeniably, a consultancy division puts OpenAI in direct competition with major consulting firms like Accenture and Deloitte, but the move could also highlight a clear acknowledgement from the AI giant that the way businesses implement AI is just as, if not more important, than choosing the right AI tools themselves.
AI Models Alone Aren’t Enough
The world has gone mad for AI since the launch of ChatGPT in 2022. This has resulted in never-before-seen investment, sensational news headlines, and a scramble from companies to implement the technology or risk being left behind.
Amidst this scramble for adoption, so much of the conversation so far has focused on choosing the best AI tools to automate existing workflows, speed-up delivery times, and ultimately boost revenue. But very little of the conversation has focused on what good AI adoption looks like, despite this being inseparable from effective AI-use.
“This is a recognition that a single foundational model cannot directly address all of a business’ needs,” says Sergii Gorpynich, CTO and co-founder of global technology consultancy Star about OpenAI’s new consultancy offering. “Creating specialised technology solutions for businesses is about understanding the company, their end users, their employees, their market, their strategies, and their executions.”
According to Gorpynich, the move from OpenAI shows an awareness that businesses are complicated domains that require bespoke, hands-on solutions. In this sense, choosing the right model isn’t enough.
He continues: “OpenAI is essentially recognising that they will not be able to fit all the purposes of all businesses with a single foundational model – they realise they need to build specialised, fine-tuned, optimised solutions.”
A Threat to Consulting & Media Agencies?
As AI models become more sophisticated, the need for consultancy support – which includes advice and guidance – could diminish. Yet, according to Gorpynich, OpenAI’s consulting company validates the need for bridging the gap between AI tools and what companies actually need. This is often referred to as ‘applied AI’, meaning the practical application of the tools and how it solves real-world solutions.
“My first thought was that it was great and a validation of what we call the ‘applied AI solutions’ space, ” he explains. “With the introduction of OpenAI’s consulting arm, there’s an acknowledgement that there is a need for specialised solutions on-top of foundational models.”
A major AI company, that knows its own products better than anyone else, also stands to threaten the existence of existing consulting firms – like the big four: Deloitte, KPMG, EY, and PwC. However, Dr. Cecilia Dones, founder and chief data officer at data consultancy 3 Standard Deviations, says this could be good for the market. “I don’t see it as a conflict of interest,” she says. “In all sectors you see all kinds of different types of growth. We don’t know how the marketplace is going to respond, and I’m excited to see what the outcome looks like because OpenAI is doing something different.”
Despite having knowledge of their products, one thing that big AI companies don’t have that consulting companies do, is knowledge from decades of working with businesses. “If you look at other established consulting companies, they’ve been building deep expertise for tens of years, which will be difficult for OpenAI to replicate,” Gorpynich explains. “They are definitely strong competition but I don’t think they’ll disrupt this domain.”
Gorpynich also highlights that other tech giants – such as Google – have opened consulting divisions, which haven’t disrupted the consultancy landscape. He continues: “AI might be a new technology but we’ve seen this before where Google opened their own consulting services for Google Cloud. Google’s consultancy arm hasn’t disrupted the space – they’re just a competitor.”
Real Adoption & AI Evangelists
Most business leaders are starting to realise that getting the ‘people aspect’ of their AI journey – where employees are open to using AI tools – is inextricably linked to its success in the organisation.
Many liken AI adoption to other forms of change management. Realistically, AI adoption is unique in its evolutionary power, and ability to completely transform the tasks almost every employee does and how they engage with their work and company. High-levels of automation can also spark fears about the future of their role.
What’s unique about AI is that it isn’t just making waves in a single organisation or industry. It’s having an impact in every business, and being used inside and outside of people’s work lives.
Dr. Dones feels that companies should capitalise on the people in the organisation who are using AI outside of the office – the ‘AI evangelists’. She says: “To become a ‘first mover’ with AI, find your AI evangelists and advocates internally – they create a culture of utilisation and experimentation.”
In its most simple form, says Dr Dones, sustainable adoption is grounded in employees getting curious about solving a problem they have. “There’s a unique democratisation of technology use with the AI wave,” she explains. “All you need to have is a problem, and a willingness to solve that problem to be an AI evangelist. You don’t have to have a technology background, but you have to have a curiosity for understanding and solving your problem.”
In this sense, real change happens from the ground-up, and it’s a leaders job to create the environment for that experimentation, and mistake-making.
Dones continues: “Change happens from your people only – so as a leader you can only create the right environment for them to feel safe to flourish. Employees start creating reasons they want to use it, and it becomes intrinsic as opposed to extrinsic.”
Perhaps a few individuals would have had a strong opinion about the CRM platform you ushered in ten years ago. But many people, especially in the creative industries as it threatens so many jobs, feel strongly about AI. Tapping into your workforce to lead the way gives employees empowerment over their AI-use, and creates a culture of innovation over fear.
The Real Test of AI Adoption
OpenAI’s decision to launch a consultancy arm signals more than just a new revenue stream, it’s a recognition that successful AI adoption is as much about people, processes, and problem-solving as it is about powerful models.
While the move places the company in direct competition with established consulting giants, it also validates the critical need for bespoke, applied solutions that bridge the gap between technical capability and business reality.
The ultimate differentiator for companies won’t be whether they use OpenAI, Google, or any other foundational model. Instead, it will be how effectively they embed AI into their culture, train employees to see opportunities rather than threats, and experiment boldly with real-world use cases. Consulting support – whether from OpenAI or traditional firms – will play a key role in guiding this evolution.
As AI continues to reshape industries at lightning speed, one truth is becoming clear: the future of business transformation won’t be dictated by algorithms alone, but by how well leaders align technology with people and purpose. OpenAI’s consultancy is just one signpost on a much larger journey.
