Sam Altman Warns OpenAI Staff of Slowing Growth and Rising Competition from Google and Anthropic

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has warned employees that the company faces a difficult period as competition in the AI sector intensifies. In a leaked internal memo, Altman described the coming months as challenging, noting that economic headwinds could slow revenue growth to single digits by 2026. He said the company remains on track to generate about $13 billion in revenue but must navigate growing pressure from major rivals.

Altman specifically pointed to Google’s recent rollout of its Gemini 3.0 model, which is now integrated across Search, Android, and Workspace, reaching more than 650 million monthly users. He acknowledged that Google’s scale and pre-training capabilities have given it a strong position in the market. Altman also mentioned Anthropic, whose Claude assistant has gained traction in coding and enterprise applications, as another key competitor closing the gap.

Despite the competition, Altman told staff that OpenAI remains well-positioned, citing the company’s research pace and technical foundation as core strengths. He said most of the research team is now focused on achieving superintelligence, which he described as central to OpenAI’s long-term mission. Balancing research, product development, and infrastructure, he admitted, is difficult but necessary to maintain leadership in the field.

Altman added that while the environment is becoming more demanding, he would not trade positions with any other company. He urged employees to stay focused on OpenAI’s long-term goals, emphasizing that temporary financial and competitive pressures will not alter the company’s direction toward building advanced AI systems.