In the bustling corridors of Davos, where global leaders converge amid alpine snow, OpenAI Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar delivered a stark assessment of artificial intelligence’s untapped potential. Speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box [CNBC], she described a “massive ‘capability overhang'” in AI, where current tools in users’ hands vastly outstrip their typical simple applications like basic search queries.
Friar emphasized the disparity: power users engage with AI seven times more than average ones, tackling complex coding, deep research, and lab breakthroughs, while most stick to rudimentary tasks. “There is AI in people’s hands today. They’re using it quite simplistically, but the power users are using it seven times more,” she said. This gap, she argued, represents a critical opportunity across consumer and enterprise fronts.
The discussion highlighted OpenAI’s symbiotic approach to both markets, with Friar noting the shift toward “agentic enterprise”—AI agents driving profound business transformations. Enterprise now constitutes 40% of OpenAI’s revenue, up from 30% late last year, per recent disclosures, as CNBC reported from Davos.
Navigating Consumer Surge and Enterprise Pivot
OpenAI’s consumer base has exploded to 800 million weekly active users for ChatGPT, more than tripling from under 300 million a year prior, Friar told CNBC. Yet, she stressed depth over breadth: users are treating ChatGPT as “the noun and the verb,” bypassing intermediaries. This direct access underscores OpenAI’s brand strength, even as Apple integrates Google’s Gemini into Siri.
“Consumers are going direct to ChatGPT,” Friar said, viewing Apple’s iPhone as “amazing distribution partners” rather than a threat. OpenAI remains embedded in Siri, but its app stands alone. Meanwhile, Gemini gains surface area via Android and iPhone, though Friar dismissed any edge, citing ChatGPT’s trust factor.
Health care exemplifies deeper utility. Friar cited examples like AI aiding biopsy analysis for second opinions in underserved areas, with 66% of U.S. physicians using ChatGPT daily—a figure that signals transformative potential.
Shifting Revenue Balance Toward Stability
Friar detailed OpenAI’s business evolution: from 70/30 consumer-to-enterprise split at year-end to 60/40 now, eyeing 50/50 by December. Enterprise boasts one million business users, the fastest-growing in AI history, mirroring consumer scale. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, in the same CNBC segment, touted his firm’s 80/20 enterprise tilt for reliable revenue and margins.
To build moats, OpenAI pushes beyond chat interfaces to task-oriented agents. Friar recounted pitching a bank CEO whose work was preempted by BBVA Chairman Carlos Torres: OpenAI scaled BBVA from 10,000 to over 120,000 deployed seats, infiltrating call centers and credit screening for true overhaul.
This mirrors broader trends. OpenAI’s annualized revenue surpassed $20 billion in 2025, up from $6 billion in 2024, tied to tripled compute capacity, per Reuters [Reuters]. Friar’s blog post, “A business that scales with the value of intelligence,” outlines subscriptions, APIs, ads, commerce, and compute as pillars [OpenAI].
Compute Hunger Fuels Growth Engine
Compute remains AI’s bottleneck, with demand “voracious,” Friar noted in prior remarks echoed in recent podcasts. OpenAI logged its first $1 billion monthly revenue in 2025 amid this crunch, per CNBC [CNBC]. 2026 prioritizes “practical adoption,” she wrote, focusing on real-world integration over hype.
Enterprise traction accelerates: 40% of OpenAI’s business now, versus Anthropic’s 80%, as both vie at Davos. ServiceNow’s recent OpenAI deal bolsters AI stacks, while partnerships proliferate. Posts on X from OpenAI highlight Friar’s podcast with Khosla Ventures’ Vinod Khosla on compute scarcity.
Friar clarified no government backstop pursuit, countering earlier misreads, in a LinkedIn update covered by CNBC [CNBC]. She urged rapid AI embrace: companies lagging risk obsolescence.
Closing the Overhang Through Agents
The capability overhang demands evolution from search to agents. Friar envisions AI as workplace companions executing tasks, from consumer aids to enterprise overhauls. Health deserts already leverage ChatGPT for guidance, pointing to equity gains.
Banks like BBVA exemplify: AI transforms operations, not just augments. Friar met CEOs pitching such shifts, finding allies in peers like Torres. OpenAI’s enterprise push rivals consumer velocity—the largest platform growth ever.
Ads and commerce enter the mix, extending ChatGPT’s utility. Age prediction for consumer plans enhances safety, per recent rollout [CNBC]. Compute deals, billions committed, sideline some players amid shortages.
Competitive Pressures and Distribution Wars
Apple’s Gemini-Siri pact drew scrutiny, yet Friar framed it as coexistence. OpenAI’s direct channel trumps embeds, with users flocking regardless of device. Google’s Android-iPhone reach pales against ChatGPT’s pull, she asserted.
DeepMind’s CEO ramps competition with OpenAI, talking daily with Google brass [CNBC]. Alphabet’s Gemini challenges ChatGPT, per Jim Cramer on CNBC. OpenAI counters via chips, partnerships, and scale.
Friar’s Davos remarks cap a year of milestones: $20 billion ARR [Analytics India Magazine], weekly user highs, and agentic focus. The overhang closes as AI embeds deeper, reshaping work and life.
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