Microsoft-backed (MSFT) AI firm OpenAI (PC:OPAIQ) has seen a major increase in how businesses use its AI tools over the past year. Indeed, ChatGPT message volume has grown eightfold since November 2024, and workers report saving up to an hour each day. This update comes just after CEO Sam Altman warned the company about rising competition from tech giant Google (GOOGL). Interestingly, OpenAI currently has 36% of U.S. businesses using ChatGPT Enterprise, compared to 14.3% for Anthropic, according to the Ramp AI Index.
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However, most of OpenAI’s income still comes from consumer subscriptions, which are now at risk due to Google’s Gemini. Meanwhile, rivals like Anthropic (PC:ANTPQ) focus on business customers, and more companies are starting to try out open-source AI models for enterprise use. Nevertheless, companies that are using OpenAI’s API are now sending 320 times more “reasoning tokens” than a year ago, which shows that AI is being used for harder tasks or being tested more aggressively. Custom GPTs are also on the rise, with digital bank BBVA (BBVA) alone using more than 4,000 of them.
More workers are also using AI to do things they couldn’t before, even complex tasks like coding. In fact, OpenAI saw a 36% increase in code-related messages from teams outside of IT and engineering. But there are risks. If non-technical users rely too much on AI for coding, it could create more security problems. OpenAI is testing a tool called Aardvark to help catch bugs and vulnerabilities. Notably, OpenAI leaders say some companies still treat AI like regular software, while others are beginning to see it as part of their core operations.
Is MSFT Stock a Good Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on MSFT stock based on 33 Buys and two Holds assigned in the last three months. Furthermore, the average MSFT price target of $630.64 per share implies 28.2% upside potential.
