OpenAI’s latest agent takes aim at Meta—can it stand out in a free market?

At OpenAI’s annual DevDay conference, the company showcased its latest efforts to keep pace with competitors, particularly Meta, which has seen early success with its Muse AI agent platform. CEO Sam Altman took the stage to enthusiastic applause, unveiling Dots, a “real-deal AI” agent powered by GPT-6 Astra, inspired by the memorable AI characters from our favorite films. Like Muse, Dots aims for an endearing aesthetic, taking the form of colorful, customizable blobs with eyes. OpenAI made a point to highlight Dots’ capabilities, demonstrating not only its role as a helpful assistant but also its potential to create immersive virtual worlds. However, Dots faces a significant challenge in one area: pricing.

Muse’s primary advantage lies in its free and user-friendly access. The platform provides a dedicated virtual machine that hosts both the agent and the user’s data at no cost. In contrast, Dots is currently limited to users subscribed to its $20/month Pro plan and higher. While anyone with a Meta account can access Muse, a large portion of ChatGPT’s 1.2 billion users will find Dots out of reach.

The reasoning behind this is clear: OpenAI likely lacks the financial flexibility. The AI lab is reportedly seeking to raise $30 billion at a $1.4 trillion valuation and has experienced a 70 percent growth rate since the start of its third quarter, nearing $70 billion in annual recurring revenue. Despite this impressive financial trajectory, its resources are not infinite, especially when compared to a tech giant like Meta. Over the past year, some users have accused AI companies of shifting costs to consumers amid a tightening financial landscape. OpenAI is currently facing significant cash burn, with expectations to spend $280 billion by 2030, and is under pressure from investors to tighten its financials ahead of a potential public offering.

“Dots are starting out as a premium product — it uses a lot of compute,” Altman mentioned during a private press Q&A following his keynote, adding, “I think it will help us understand and help people grasp the vast potential of AI. But you should expect us to eventually create something for the mass market that serves billions.”

During the conference, OpenAI emphasized the value of Dots, positioning them not just as personal assistants but as “chief of staff” or experienced engineers. OpenAI employee Holly Li described using a Dot as “like talking to a second brain.” Altman noted that Dots are designed for handling “ambitious pieces of work,” such as quality assurance for unreleased products, website design, planning team retreats, portfolio management, and email campaign creation. Specialized Dots, tailored for fields like accounting and legal analysis, are expected to launch soon, with plans to integrate them into Microsoft’s Agent 365 platform.

Altman expressed the ambition to go beyond agents that merely handle reservations, meal orders, calendar searches, and appointment scheduling — typical functions for consumer-focused tools like Muse.

When asked how Dots differ from Muse and Instinct, another emerging AI agent, Thibault Sottiaux, OpenAI’s head of core products, stated that Dots can “actually stay on track over extended periods.” He added that the multimodal capabilities of Dots, allowing interaction via text, voice, or phone calls, would feel like “an incredible extension of you.” However, the voice demos of Dots did not function during the event, and while OpenAI highlighted the texting feature multiple times, it is still slated for future release, similar to Muse and Instinct.

Altman emphasized that the long-term and knowledge-intensive tasks are what set Dots apart, stating, “I think this is far beyond anything else available on the market today.” He mentioned that the agents’ assistance with managing to-do lists and supporting employees would be “difficult for economists to measure immediately” but could significantly impact how people perceive their work.

By framing Dots as a professional tool, OpenAI not only distinguishes them from Muse but also positions itself to compete with Anthropic in the enterprise sector. Anthropic has long dominated enterprise AI, but OpenAI has increased its focus and resources in this area over the past year. OpenAI’s CFO noted that the company’s enterprise business has doubled since July.

OpenAI also aimed to promote Dots as a safer and more secure option compared to Muse. The company’s Codex product lead emphasized their commitment to creating the “most trustworthy, safe, and secure assistant,” powered by GPT-6 Astra, their “most aligned model.” During the keynote, executives introduced “OpenAI Private Intelligence,” a data privacy framework that offers businesses enhanced control over their data, including options for zero data retention, ensuring no data is stored on OpenAI servers.

Altman stated that OpenAI aims to “set a new standard for privacy in frontier AI,” especially in light of recent criticisms faced by Muse for mishandling user data.

“I think we’re in a different position than Meta, as they don’t have an AI product with 1.2 billion users,” said OpenAI’s head of app platform. “Launching something that makes those kinds of mistakes is something we would strive to avoid. We’re being very deliberate about how we allow our agents to use plug-ins, manage user identities, and handle transactions.”

The real question remains whether all these features can compete with a free offering. ChatGPT gained popularity not only for being first but also for its accessibility without requiring sign-in. Muse may continue to lead in the AI agent space for similar reasons. Additionally, Meta’s seamless integration with its other platforms, like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, gives it an edge. While OpenAI claims that users will be able to connect Dots to various external tools, these integrations may not be as smooth as those offered by Meta.

For now, OpenAI is banking on the idea that a superior product will outweigh a lower price. “We might move a bit slower, but we also recognize that if people have Dots that impulsively buy things on Facebook Marketplace, that’s not something we want to expose 1.2 billion users to,” the head of app platform remarked. “We’re focused on doing it right.”