Key Takeaways
- Denise Dresser, OpenAI’s revenue chief, distributed an internal memo highlighting the Amazon partnership’s importance for enterprise expansion
- The memo stated Microsoft’s partnership has “limited our ability to meet enterprises where they are”
- In late February 2026, Amazon revealed intentions to invest as much as $50 billion in OpenAI
- Enterprise operations represent 40% of OpenAI’s total revenue and are projected to equal consumer revenue by year’s conclusion
- Anthropic faced sharp criticism from Dresser, who characterized its approach as founded on “fear, restriction, and the idea that a small group of elites should control AI”
In a staff communication sent Sunday, OpenAI’s chief revenue officer Denise Dresser lauded the company’s recently forged Amazon alliance while acknowledging that its established Microsoft relationship has constrained growth opportunities.
CNBC obtained the internal communication, which arrived roughly six weeks following Amazon’s announcement of a strategic collaboration involving potential investments reaching $50 billion in OpenAI.
“Our Microsoft partnership has been foundational to our success. But it has also limited our ability to meet enterprises where they are — for many that’s Bedrock,” Dresser wrote.
Amazon Web Services’ Bedrock solution provides corporate clients with centralized access to leading AI models, including those from OpenAI, via a unified cloud infrastructure. According to OpenAI, enterprise interest following the Amazon announcement has been “frankly staggering.”
Microsoft has poured over $13 billion into OpenAI beginning in 2019. While both organizations characterize their alliance as fundamental and strategic, they’ve increasingly ventured into competitive territory. In its 2024 annual filing, Microsoft identified OpenAI among its competitive threats.
Beyond Microsoft, OpenAI has begun collaborating with alternative cloud infrastructure providers such as CoreWeave, Google, and Oracle to expand computational resources.
Intensifying Competition in Enterprise AI
OpenAI is aggressively pursuing enterprise customers, a segment where Anthropic’s Claude system has established significant market presence. Google’s Gemini platform represents another formidable competitor in this arena.
In remarks to CNBC this month, Dresser revealed that enterprise clients now generate 40% of OpenAI’s overall revenue. Projections indicate enterprise revenue will match consumer revenue levels before year-end.
During last week’s HumanX AI industry gathering in San Francisco, Glean’s CEO Arvind Jain described the enthusiasm for Anthropic’s Claude as “Claude mania,” stating “it has become a religion.”
Sharp Words for Anthropic
In the internal communication, Dresser delivered pointed criticism of Anthropic, characterizing its business philosophy as rooted in “fear, restriction, and the idea that a small group of elites should control AI.”
She additionally claimed Anthropic committed a “strategic misstep to not acquire enough compute.” Another OpenAI document shared with investors Thursday indicated Anthropic is “operating on a meaningfully smaller curve.”
Earlier this month, Anthropic disclosed a computing infrastructure agreement with Google and Broadcom covering “multiple gigawatts.”
OpenAI achieved a valuation exceeding $850 billion during a late March capital raise. Anthropic secured a $380 billion valuation one month prior. Both organizations are contemplating public offerings within the current year.
Dresser joined OpenAI as chief revenue officer this past December. Her background includes serving as Slack’s CEO and executive positions at Salesforce.
Concluding her message to employees, she declared: “The market is ours to win, let’s execute accordingly.”
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