Did you know that there’s more to ChatGPT than just asking it questions? The AI model can connect to a bunch of various services to enhance its overall offerings, making it more powerful than most people realize. Now, ChatGPT is getting even more powerful with the launch of its own app store .
ChatGPT gets its own app store
Basically, what OpenAI has done is opened the ChatGPT SDK to developers. This means that developers can create apps that operate within ChatGPT’s UI. So, if there is a feature that you wish ChatGPT had, you can check the app store to see if there’s an app for that.
According to OpenAI, “You can use select apps to take actions on your behalf, search and reference information from your data sources, run deep research across multiple sources with citations, or sync content in advance so you have up‑to‑date information on-demand in your workspace’s knowledge base.”
To that end, OpenAI has also renamed connectors to apps. For those unfamiliar, connectors are the external tools, like Google Drive, Dropbox, and Canva, that connect to ChatGPT. This is quite an interesting and exciting development. So far, AI models have largely been limited to what the companies created. But now with apps, it opens up a lot more possibilities.
This is similar to how iOS and Android operate. While the default features included by Apple and Google are functional, its the third-party apps that really make a huge difference. This also brings us to our next question: monetization.
Will OpenAI monetize this?
One of the ways Apple and Google make money is by taking a cut from apps sold and distributed through their app stores. Is this a route that OpenAI might take? The company hasn’t confirmed it yet, but it states that it is exploring its options. “We’re exploring additional monetization options over time, including digital goods, and will share more as we learn from how developers and users build and engage.”
