OpenAI is the everything-platform ushering in the era of AI-first marketing

Are you ready for AI-first marketing? I’m not talking about using AI to do marketing. I’m talking about AI platforms becoming the interface, the context, and the locus of your core marketing activities.

A tectonic shift is happening in the world of digital platforms. At its 2025 DevDay just yesterday, OpenAI announced two major launches: apps built inside ChatGPT and AgentKit for creating AI agents.

What makes this especially important: ChatGPT is the next billion-user platform. It is graduating from an app to a platform as we watch, and now we know that this platform will have both agents doing all kinds of work and apps conducting all kinds of business.

This matters, because if there’s anything we’ve learned about platforms from Apple, Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and IBM: successful platforms inevitably accrue most of existing ecosystem value to themselves.

And, they set the rules of engagement for everyone else.

Right now, ChatGPT has 800 million weekly active users, up from zero just a few short years ago. As ChatGPT grows into its emerging platform status, marketers need to recognize that this is likely to be one of the most important shifts in digital architecture in years, if not decades.

• It’s a challenge to Google Search
• It’s a challenge to Google Play
• It’s a challenge to Apple’s App Store power
• And, as we’ll see, it’s a challenge to much, much more

Because ChatGPT is a multi-platform. 

Maybe an uber-platform … maybe the everything-platform. 

And perhaps, finally, the 1 true western super-app.

ChatGPT … the everything-platform?

This is much more than just ChatGPT getting some new features.

Potentially, this is the beginning of a re-wiring of who controls digital distribution, who owns user attention, and who can monetize both embedded experiences and real-world retail purchases. In other words, the emergence of AI-first marketing. And, incidentally, AI-first products, AI-first games, AI-first … everything.

So it’s not just about mobile apps as we currently understand them. It’s not just about the App Store and Google Play.

Because we do everything in ChatGPT and its competitors. We get work done with LLMs. We buy things based on recommendations from LLMs. We answer health questions via LLMs. We get travel suggestions on LLMs. We do almost everything via LLMs … we’ll probably even play games inside LLMs before too long. 

Apps on ChatGPT will be able to appear inline, expand to full-screen, and use picture-in-picture, meaning games are a definite possibility.

This impacts mobile apps, for sure, which do much of this today, but it also impacts e-commerce platforms like Amazon. It impacts the open web and websites like Booking.com. It impacts productivity software like Google Workspace and Microsoft Office.

And probably much more I’m not thinking about right now.

Because ChatGPT is a multi-platform. It’s not a gaming platform or a productivity platform or a search platform or a commerce platform. Potentially, it’s all of those put together … the everything platform.

Let’s take a few minutes to dig into what this means, what opportunities it presents, where the risks are, and how marketers should position themselves.

Let’s start here: what did OpenAI announce?

First, here’s a quick breakdown of the key announcements:

Apps inside ChatGPT via Apps SDK

• Developers can now build interactive apps that live within the ChatGPT interface. These apps respond to natural-language prompts, show interactive UI elements (maps, forms, sliders, etc.), and can be invoked within conversations.
• For users: ChatGPT can suggest apps contextually (if you’re talking about finding a hotel, it might surface Booking.com). Or you can explicitly summon an app (e.g. “Spotify, make a playlist for my party”).
• For developers: The SDK is open source, built on the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Developers can start building in preview now; later in 2025 OpenAI will open app submissions and monetization.  
• Early partner apps include Booking.com, Canva, Coursera, Figma, Expedia, Spotify, Zillow.  

 

AgentKit for AI agents

• AgentKit is OpenAI’s new tooling suite to help developers design, deploy, and optimize AI agents (automated workflows or “assistant agents”) more easily.  
• It offers a visual interface for defining agent logic, connectors, evaluation pipelines, and UI embedding.  
• Because apps themselves are now integrated, combining agents and apps means agents can trigger app usage or collaborate with them inside ChatGPT.
• In other words: ChatGPT becomes the orchestration layer, not just a point of interface.

Taken together and building on OpenAI’s existing and growing scale, these changes usher in the first stages of AI-first marketing.

Why this is a big deal: a multi-platform power shift

Below are some of the biggest implications.

1. The platform becomes the interface

Today, to reach users, customers, and players, services need to …

• Publish on the web and rank well in Google Search
• Publish in the App Store and Google Play (and rank well)
• Buy ads to promote their apps or sites, or …
• Choose organic/owned tactics for getting attention and traffic that they can monetize

If the new ChatGPT platform takes root and wins our time and attention, the interface becomes ChatGPT itself. Users don’t necessarily go out to search or open an app … they stay in the conversation. They invoke the service they want, or ChatGPT suggests it.

(Think how much money Amazon makes by suggesting products. Will ChatGPT monetize app suggestions?)

In this scenario, ChatGPT becomes the “operating system” … the super-app … the uber-platform. And apps merge into the fabric of that operating system incredibly seamlessly, in context. 

Context is critical here. Unlike any other existing operating system or platform, ChatGPT knows all your conversations with and learnings from third-party apps. That’s super-powerful, but also brings up privacy concerns. If Apple, Amazon, and Google have huge advantages in their ecosystems because they have more data, OpenAI could have much, much more.

That switches up the conventional go-to-market model.

2. Distribution via OpenAI, not Google or Apple

OpenAI is positioning itself as the gatekeeper of access. Rather than your app being discovered via Apple’s or Google’s app stores, your app (or agent) is discovered in ChatGPT, suggested by context, surfaced via ChatGPT’s directory, or invoked conversationally. 

(That’s the environment for AI-first marketing.)

Because ChatGPT has 800 million weekly users and continues to grow fast, the potential reach is enormous.

It’s literally getting comparable to or even exceeding many existing platforms and ecosystems.  

In that scenario, OpenAI could disintermediate (or at least compete with) the traditional app-store model controlled by Apple and Google, and the typical SEO model controlled by Google. (Plus other distribution mechanisms, like the physical product model currently largely controlled by Amazon.)

3. Monetization inside the interface

OpenAI is not just offering distribution: it’s baking commerce into ChatGPT itself. There is already talk of “Instant Checkout” and integrations with Etsy/Shopify, enabling users to purchase goods inside ChatGPT.  

That means marketers (especially e-commerce brands) could convert interest to sales directly within ChatGPT, rather than sending users off to a shop or website. 

That could be incredibly frictionless, a revolution in retail similar to how Amazon’s one-click purchase button changed the e-commerce world in 1997. 

The more friction is removed, the more powerful the conversion, and OpenAI is building not just commerce into ChatGPT, but agentic commerce … meaning perhaps your agents will eventually make purchases that you’ve pre-authorized.

In fact, that’s exactly what marketers expect from agents.

4. The rise of conversational UX and agents

Instead of thinking of your app or website as a static interface, product managers and marketers will now need to think in terms of agents, flows, and conversational experiences. 

• How does your service work in a dialogue?
• What triggers, states, decision logic, handoffs to UI, or fallback to web are needed?
• What does engagement look like?
• How do you impact retention?
• How do you measure conversions?
• How do you understand CAC?
• What data will you have to calculate ROAS?

With Apps SDK and AgentKit, OpenAI is lowering the barrier to create these experiences. 

Marketers and product teams will need to think in these terms or risk being left behind. Some testing is going to need to happen, and happen fast.

5. Google search and SEO under threat

As users start relying more on ChatGPT to fulfill information, product, or service tasks inside the AI interface, the centrality of web search will continue to erode. We’ve seen that already since late 2024, when OpenAI rolled out ChatGPT Search.

(I joked with a CEO the other day that web search is like cable TV … only for old people. That’s not 100% true in either case, but it’s directionally accurate.)

That means your brand and content must adapt to appearing not just on web pages but via conversation-based apps or agents. “Ranking” in an AI-first marketing reality becomes less about keywords and more about alignment with conversational intents, app matchmaking, and contextual suggestions.

And web-based marketing, whether mobile or desktop, changes drastically.

What marketers should be thinking about (and doing)

There’s clearly a lot of change coming in the era of AI-first marketing. Where do you start?

Given this shift, here’s how marketers can proactively adapt:

1. Start building or prototyping ChatGPT-native experiences
   • Identify core brand services or features that could be reimagined as conversational apps (e.g. product configurators, quizzes, concierge, content recommendation, booking).
   • Use the Apps SDK to prototype mini-apps or embed parts of your service into ChatGPT contexts.
   • Think in modular flows: rather than an entire app, start with micro experiences.
2. Design for conversational UX, not just UI
   • Map user journeys as conversations, with branching logic, fallbacks, state management, context carryover.
   • Be mindful of how prompts, clarifications, system vs user messages, and UI renderings (sliders, forms, maps) interplay.
   • Plan for error handling, “Are you sure?” confirmation, fallbacks to web links when needed.
3. Leverage agent workflows
   • Use AgentKit to create intelligent agents for recurring tasks: onboarding help, content recommendations, or even full customer service flows.
   • Agents can trigger app usage internally (e.g. “Your agent can invoke the booking app now”) or orchestrate multi-step tasks.
4. Embed commerce and reduce friction
   • If your brand sells products, explore how Instant Checkout (or its equivalent) might let users transact inside ChatGPT.
   • Rethink funnel drop-off: fewer context switches, fewer page loads, more in-chat conversion.
5. Content strategy for prompts & intents
   • Recognize that your content and messaging need to align to user intents as expressed conversationally (not just web SEO).
   • Consider prompting frameworks: “When a user says X, your app could respond Y; next prompt Z.”
   • Monitor which intents are most invoked and optimize responses or UI embed accordingly.
6. Think about app discovery & positioning
   • Because apps will likely have a directory or catalog inside ChatGPT, your app or agent will need to meet high standards for usability, design, speed, and clarity to be surfaced or featured.  
   • Invest in onboarding, branding, and contextual prompts that encourage users to “install/enable” your app.
   • Think about how you’ll market your app on ChatGPT in ads and organic experiences. “Word of mouth” will have a whole new meaning in contextual LLM-driven app invocations.
7. Watch data, privacy, and interoperability
   • Users will be prompted to connect apps and grant permissions; your app must be transparent and trustworthy.  
   • Consider how to link your app’s backend with your existing systems while respecting privacy, compliance, and security.
   • Be prepared to interoperate with other ChatGPT apps or modules (e.g. combining your app with analytics, content, or more).
8. Monitor performance and feedback loops
   • With usage inside ChatGPT, metrics will shift: usage sessions, app invocation counts, conversation abandonment, agent success rates.
   • Build feedback loops to refine prompt flows, UX, error handling, and context retention.
9. Experiment early, but manage expectations
   • As this is still new and evolving, early results may be uneven.
   • Focus on high-value verticals (e.g. travel, commerce, media) where integrated experiences matter most.

Of course, as with any major platform shift, there are dangers to keep in mind:

• Centralization & dependency
  If your entire business becomes deeply tied to ChatGPT, you are dependent on OpenAI’s rules, ranking logic, monetization terms, and changes.
• App discoverability competition
  Only some apps may be highlighted or surfaced prominently. You might get buried unless your UX or value is strong.
• Privacy & data control
  Handling permissions, user trust, and data security will be essential.
• Performance constraints
  Latency, context limits, memory retention, or model hallucinations may degrade experiences.
• Regulation, antitrust, and scrutiny
  As OpenAI becomes more of a “platform” provider, it may attract regulatory or competitive pressure.

Entering the age of AI-first marketing

For marketers, this is kinda like when web browsers first became the dominant interface, or when mobile apps became the new new thing.

In a similar way, the emerging shift to AI-first marketing, or conversation-first product and brand experiences is not incremental … it’s structural.

Brands that begin thinking inside the conversation … building apps and agents for ChatGPT …  will be better positioned than those still fixated on web pages or mobile apps alone. 

The new gatekeepers of discovery and conversion in AI-first marketing are very likely to be AI platforms like OpenAI, not Google or the App Store.

But don’t panic.

None of this will happen instantly. And though TV killed radio, radio still exists … as does TV, even though streaming is bigger now, and the internet is bigger than both.

So: the sky is not falling. At least not instantly.

But there very well may be a new sheriff in town.

And it’s always a good idea to get to know the new powers that be.