The firm positions its newly unveiled platform to handle intricate, extensive agent deployments and vie with competitors pursuing similar goals.
OpenAI aims to establish its recently launched Frontier platform, introduced earlier this month, as the premier solution for managing enterprise AI agents. However, to achieve this, the company, renowned for its 2022 ChatGPT release, must demonstrate its capability to effectively handle complex, large-scale agent implementations, outperforming other technology providers with similar aspirations.
As described by OpenAI, Frontier serves as a comprehensive “end-to-end” platform tailored to assist “enterprises in building, deploying, and managing AI agents.” It facilitates the integration of agents with essential business systems—including CRM, ERP, and data warehouses—and streamlines the configuration, monitoring, and governance of these agents.
Among its initial clients are State Farm and Thermo Fisher Scientific.
Eric Goodness, a distinguished vice president analyst at Gartner, characterized the platform as an “intelligence layer” or “operating system” for enterprise AI agents. He noted, “It represents a comprehensive, full-stack strategy by OpenAI to simplify the intricacies of middleware and other obstacles, thereby enabling the development of wide-ranging generative and agentic AI solutions.”
Tim Law, a research director at IDC, observed, “Businesses are encountering difficulties transitioning from prototypes, proofs of concept, and single-step agents to fully integrated, multi-agent, end-to-end workflows.” He added that Frontier’s introduction “is a positive development for enterprises considering collaboration with OpenAI.”
OpenAI has already established a footprint within major organizations through its enterprise-grade ChatGPT, alongside its APIs and developer tools. Goodness commented that the company has been “shifting its focus toward the enterprise over recent years,” engaging in collaborations with software providers and global systems integrators to offer generative AI (genAI) tools and services to businesses.
However, evolving from merely a model provider to an agent control plane entails new expectations. With Frontier integrating more deeply into critical business systems, companies will likely examine OpenAI’s enduring commitment to the enterprise sector and its technical prowess with greater intensity.
Law indicated that despite OpenAI’s initial success, “certain reservations have emerged regarding their dedication to the enterprise stack,” as their diversification into new ventures has prompted inquiries about their strategic priorities.
He mentioned, “A perception has circulated that OpenAI might be diverting its attention to other consumer-oriented business endeavors,” citing reports about the company’s collaboration with former Apple designer Jony Ive on AI hardware. He also highlighted their participation in constructing extensive data centers to satisfy increasing AI demands.
Although OpenAI possesses advanced technology and substantial organizational resources, its presence in enterprise settings is less entrenched than that of established market leaders. He explained, “Many of these applications and data management systems—particularly those from hyperscalers—have been operational within organizations for years, representing a familiar and reliable presence.” He concluded, “OpenAI must ensure it effectively conveys and positions itself as more than merely a novel AI feature experiencing rapid growth in reasoning capabilities.”
The introduction of Frontier places OpenAI in direct competition with existing enterprise software providers who are also vying to become the central orchestration layer for AI agents. For example, Microsoft unveiled its Agent 365 platform last year, which shares certain functionalities with Frontier, notably in agent governance and security, in addition to offering several agent creation tools. Google, having invested years in expanding into the enterprise market, similarly offers a range of products for developing and managing agents. Law noted that both Microsoft and Google benefit from seamless integration with their respective application suites.
Large organizations have largely not yet implemented agents extensively, but incumbent vendors might gain an initial edge should businesses increase their investments. Law stated that when enterprise entities assess large language models (LLMs) and agentic platforms, their “primary preference for a provider tends to be the hyperscalers.”
Although OpenAI initially benefited from being a pioneer in the enterprise sector, the competitive environment is evolving rapidly, and Law remarked that “many rivals swiftly closed the gap by 2025.” He added, “I would include Anthropic in that group…” That firm “implemented a meticulously defined and organized ‘go-to-market’ strategy targeting enterprises. They secured a notable share of the enterprise market, leveraging their constitutional AI and their emphasis on alignment and safety protocols.”
A further hurdle for OpenAI involves proving its sustained dedication to particular industry verticals. While the company has indicated its intentions through initiatives like OpenAI for Healthcare—underscoring a deliberate move into regulated domains—earning the trust of enterprises will require considerable time.
Law commented, “A critical query for OpenAI and other players is, ‘To what extent are you focused on my specific business needs?’ This is because such focus is a key determinant for fostering enduring partnerships within vertical industries.”
Enterprises seek the reliability of sustained collaborations, he further explained, desiring assurances that emerging technologies can “seamlessly integrate into diverse existing IT environments” comprising legacy systems, and “cooperate effectively with all other service providers.”
Law stated, “Establishing a comprehensive vertical strategy quickly is challenging.” He pointed out that vendors like SAP, Oracle, and Salesforce have invested years in cultivating extensive industry-specific proficiencies. Acquiring such specialized knowledge necessitates domain experts, proprietary assets, and established partnerships with system integrators, “a process that will inevitably consume significant time for them.”
Moreover, it will necessitate ongoing development of services and supporting ecosystems essential for scaling agents across intricate operational settings. Goodness observed, “At its foundation, OpenAI is a company focused on models and intelligence—not a global systems integrator.”
Achieving enterprise-level scalability will demand additional collaborations with systems integrators and managed service providers. Goodness explained, “To advance and scale—mirroring Anthropic and other contenders—they will need a robust, potentially certified, network of Global Systems Integrators (GSIs) and managed service providers to assist their clients in developing dependable, distinctive solutions. Currently, everyone is at the initial phase in this regard.”
Consistent with this strategy, the company is reportedly increasing its cadre of forward-deployed engineers—expert consultants dedicated to assisting major enterprise clients in implementing its services.
Goodness noted that this initiative is expected to facilitate the deployment of products like Frontier, especially for its premium clientele.
OpenAI has additionally revealed several executive appointments. Law remarked, “They have been reinforcing their executive leadership.” These new hires include a CTO of applications, who brings “a strong enterprise orientation, a focus now visibly spreading throughout the company.”
Law further highlighted OpenAI’s recruitment of Anthropic’s lead for AI safety and alignment, signaling to businesses that OpenAI shares “comparable emphasis” with its competitor. Despite the company’s substantial investments in safety and alignment as part of its research efforts, this hiring signifies a renewed commitment to safety and security preparedness.
Law pondered, “For numerous enterprises, a critical concern remains: ‘Can I be confident that I am not considerably enlarging my attack surface by deploying multi-agent, end-to-end workflows?'”
Additional appointments feature Denise Dresser, formerly CEO of Slack and an executive at Salesforce, who has assumed the role of chief revenue officer; and Peter Steinberger, the innovator behind OpenClaw, who chose to integrate with OpenAI instead of founding his own venture.
Law remarked that several of these strategic decisions have “instilled confidence in enterprises.”
Naturally, OpenAI is not the sole entity facing the challenge of persuading clients that it can deliver the essential framework for large-scale agent management and deployment. The wider market is still in its nascent stages, and no provider has yet attained broad agent adoption across the enterprise sector.
Goodness characterized the current situation as “the wild west; everyone faces obstacles.”
