Key Highlights –
- OpenAI is launching a new “AI-first” jobs platform next year.
- With this move, Sam Altman’s AI company aims to create an ecosystem of AI professionals, with a dedicated certification program.
- This would place OpenAI directly in position of rivalling existing job platforms such as LinkedIn.
OpenAI has confirmed that it will launch a new offering called OpenAI Jobs Platform, which is expected to go live by mid-2026. In a recent blog post, Fidji Simo, OpenAI’s CEO of Applications shared how the upcoming platform will use AI to “find the perfect matches between what companies need and what workers can offer.”
We want to put AI, and the power that comes with it, in the hands of as many people as possible. But it’s also important to make sure those people know how to use AI to be more productive, shape the world around them, and control their own destiny in new ways.
– Fidji Simo
(CEO of Applications, OpenAI)
The platform will have a dedicated track for small businesses and local governments to help them compete for top talent against large corporations.
OpenAI’s Jobs Platform – What We Know
According to a report by TechCrunch, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman shared that Simo would oversee several applications beyond the chatbot. This could include this Jobs Platform along with other projects under work.
As AI impacts the jobs across every sector, a demand for workers who are proficient in using such AI tools, has emerged. There already exists job portals who use AI to help companies and candidates efficiently hire, get hired such as LinkedIn, Monster, Indeed to name a few.
Jumping into this, OpenAI, which is already popular in Gen-AI, plans to diversify and address this market bottleneck. The service will feature a dedicated track for small businesses and local governments to help them compete for top AI talent against large corporations.
Some storytellers will dismiss it and die (see @sundancefest 🦖) while others will embrace it and thrive. Any tool that allows more voices to tell their stories in a more accessible and affordable way ALWAYS wins. AI will be no different. https://t.co/ARV68c6Nma
— Matthew Prince 🌥 (@eastdakota) September 8, 2025
Fidji Simo observed that a key goal of this initiative is to help businesses “trust that candidates are actually fluent in AI.” The platform will act as a marketplace where candidates’ skills are proven, not just listed on a resume.
Further sharing his perspective, Simo stated, “We cannot prevent disruption, but we can do our part by helping people become fluent in AI and connecting them with companies that need their skills.” To this end, OpenAI has already partnered with major players such as Walmart, John Deere, and Boston Consulting Group etc, to align training with real-world hiring needs. The pilot program for the platform is set to roll out ahead of its full launch.
OpenAI Certifications and How LinkedIn, Other Competitors Fare
Along with OpenAI’s new Jobs Platform the AI company is also integrating the portal with its forthcoming OpenAI Certifications. This Certifications program will make its debut in late 2025 via the OpenAI Academy, with the aim of verifying different levels of “AI fluency,” ranging from basic workplace use to advanced prompt engineering.
Unlike traditional certifications, these will be based on practical, AI-powered assessments. It is likely that OpenAI’s certifications could very well be positioned as the new gold standard for AI skills in the market. OpenAI has already committed to certifying 10 million Americans by 2030, keeping Walmart as its major launch partner.
With this strategy OpenAI aims to directly challenge established professional platforms like LinkedIn. While LinkedIn has long dominated the professional networking landscape, its current system relies extensively on self-reported skills and third-party certifications, which OpenAI’s newfound plan might displace next year.
Given how companies have previously relied on a test-based hiring platform, helping them skip a technical round or two, ChatGPT owners’ plan could force LinkedIn to step up its product roadmap or come up with a new strategy for this, maybe even rethink how it could integrate Microsoft’s AI systems. Recently, OpenAI also made headlines for making ChatGPT Projects feature accessible across both paid and free users with new updates.
