OpenAI Leaders Reportedly Told Employees It's Taking Fewer ‘Side Quests’

OpenAI Leaders Reportedly Told Employees It’s Taking Fewer ‘Side Quests’

Last updated: 2026/03/17 at 9:18 AM

News Room Published 17 March 2026

OpenAI plans to deprioritize expanding into new side projects to refocus on its core tools, according to a new report.

During an all-hands meeting, OpenAI leaders told employees it would focus on business and productivity tools rather than trying to “do everything all at once,” according to leaked materials seen by The Wall Street Journal. This move comes as the brand has faced increased competition from Anthropic’s Claude AI tools.

Fidji Simo, OpenAI’s CEO of applications, reportedly told staff, “We cannot miss this moment because we are distracted by side quests.” Simo expanded further on the refocus, saying, “We really have to nail productivity in general and particularly productivity on the business front.”

Simo’s comments suggest the brand will focus on business opportunities going forward rather than expanding into additional consumer areas, although she didn’t share specific examples of what leadership considers a “side quest.” The brand is exploring hardware gadgets designed by Jony Ive, as well as upgrading other projects such as its Sora video generation and Atlas web browser.

This report may mean we see OpenAI focus less on expanding into new areas and introducing new consumer-friendly features, and more on encouraging business customers to adopt ChatGPT and its other tools.

Anthropic’s Claude has proven successful in recent weeks amid an ongoing legal battle with the Pentagon, which appears to have led more people than ever to try out the AI. Claude knocked ChatGPT from the top spot of the Google and Apple app stores for a short time.

Simo specifically referenced Anthropic’s success in the meeting, saying it should serve as a “wake-up call” for OpenAI to regain the advantage.

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Recently, OpenAI confirmed it would delay its mooted adult mode features while it continues to work on age verification. A report from The Wall Street Journal earlier this week suggests it also stemmed from internal concerns around how some users may grow unhealthily attached to the tools.

Disclosure: Ziff Davis, PCMag’s parent company, filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in April 2025, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.