Openai Seals $1.1 B Deal To Boost App Development

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OpenAI has struck an all‐stock agreement to acquire Statsig for about $1.1 billion, appointing the startup's founder, Vijaye Raji, as chief technology officer of applications, a move poised to accelerate the firm's product engineering efforts for ChatGPT, Codex, and future AI tools. The acquisition and leadership reshuffle reflect OpenAI's intensified push into building scalable, safe, and intuitive AI-powered applications amid mounting competition.

The acquisition, pending regulatory approval, brings Statsig's entire Seattle‐based team under OpenAI's umbrella, while allowing the experimentation platform to continue operating independently during integration. Raji will report to Fidji Simo, who leads OpenAI's Applications division after her departure from Instacart earlier this year.

Built around rapid experimentation, Statsig offers A/B testing, feature‐flagging, and real‐time decisioning tools - capabilities already leveraged by top tech firms, including OpenAI itself. Bringing this platform in-house is expected to accelerate product iteration and improve responsiveness across OpenAI's application portfolio.

Beyond integrating Statsig's technology, OpenAI is reshaping its leadership structure. Kevin Weil, formerly chief product officer, has transitioned to lead a new AI‐for‐science initiative, while engineering head Srinivas Narayanan has been elevated to CTO of B2B Applications to support enterprise and government efforts.

OpenAI's latest move builds on a series of high‐profile acquisitions this year. Earlier, it acquired io, the hardware start‐up founded by Jony Ive, in a $6.5 billion deal aimed at advancing AI hardware development. The consolidation of software experimentation capabilities now pairs with the hardware forays to broaden the company's technological portfolio.

Financially, OpenAI remains on a steep growth trajectory. It doubled its annualised run‐rate to $12 billion within the first seven months and is tipped to reach $20 billion by year's end. The company is also progressing through an employee liquidity tender at a $500 billion valuation.

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In tech circles, the acquisition is seen as both a strategic talent bet and a functional upgrade. GeekWire called it a“surprise exit for the Seattle‐area unicorn,” underlining the dual nature of the transaction: acquiring a platform and its visionary leader. In statements, Raji emphasised the opportunity to scale consumer and enterprise products responsibly, while Simo highlighted his track record of building systems at scale.

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