'Code red'. Altman and OpenAI are at panic stations
OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman has told employees to shift priorities toward shoring up ChatGPT after a string of competitive blows from Google and Anthropic. In an internal memo, reported by The Information, Altman declared a “code red” and instructed teams to accelerate improvements to the chatbot.
The decision means other projects, including OpenAI’s planned AI agents, will be pushed back.
The pivot follows the release of Google’s Gemini 3, which arrived in November to strong reviews and benchmark wins over ChatGPT. Alphabet’s share price hit record levels and high profile users, including Salesforce chief executive Mark Benioff, publicly switched allegiance.
Altman congratulated Google in public but privately warned staff that Gemini 3 could create economic pressure for OpenAI.
Another rival, Anthropic, added to the squeeze with its new model Claude Opus 4.5, launched on 24 November. OpenAI is trying to defend a position it has held since ChatGPT’s breakout three years ago, but its most recent model, GPT 5, drew mixed reactions on release.
The timing is particularly sensitive because OpenAI has pinned its future on aggressive growth. The company expects revenue to jump from $13 billion in 2025 to $200 billion by 2030, a target that assumes continued dominance in the chatbot market. At the same time, it has committed an extraordinary $1.4 trillion to scaling AI infrastructure over the next eight years, including multibillion dollar arrangements with CoreWeave, Oracle, Broadcom, Nvidia and AMD.
Those commitments, combined with OpenAI’s circular deals involving suppliers who are also customers, have raised concerns among analysts about froth in the AI sector. Whether the company can hit its lofty forecasts now rests on its ability to keep ChatGPT competitive while competitors move faster.
