OpenAI to launch AI jobs platform in 2026 to rival LinkedIn
OpenAI is preparing to move beyond its consumer-facing products and into the professional networking space with the launch of the OpenAI Jobs Platform, a hiring service designed to connect businesses with workers through advanced AI matching. The company expects to debut the platform by mid-2026, according to a spokesperson who confirmed the plans to TechCrunch.
A New Market Push
The effort was formally announced by Fidji Simo, OpenAI’s CEO of Applications, in a blog post Thursday. Simo described the project as a way to “use AI to help find the perfect matches between what companies need and what workers can offer.” Unlike existing job boards, OpenAI’s platform will include a dedicated track for small businesses and local governments, giving them direct access to specialized AI talent that is often difficult to find.
The hiring service is part of a broader push by OpenAI to expand into markets outside of ChatGPT, its flagship consumer product. CEO Sam Altman recently noted that Simo will be overseeing multiple application-driven products, including the jobs platform and other rumored projects like an AI-enabled browser and even a potential social media app.
Direct Competition with LinkedIn
By entering the hiring and professional networking space, OpenAI is setting itself up for head-to-head competition with LinkedIn, a platform co-founded by Reid Hoffman, one of OpenAI’s early investors. LinkedIn has already been integrating AI-powered tools to streamline recruiting and job matching, but OpenAI’s entry could bring heightened competition to the sector.
Building an AI-Literate Workforce
Alongside the Jobs Platform, OpenAI is expanding its educational offerings through the OpenAI Academy, which launched last year. The company will begin offering AI fluency certifications in late 2025, designed to help workers demonstrate their ability to use and collaborate with AI tools. The goal is to certify 10 million Americans by 2030, with support from corporate partners such as Walmart, one of the largest private employers globally.
These certifications are being developed as part of OpenAI’s involvement in the White House’s AI literacy initiative, reflecting growing national and corporate efforts to prepare workers for an AI-driven economy.
Navigating Job Disruption
The rise of AI-powered automation has raised alarms across the tech sector. Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, has warned that AI could wipe out up to 50% of entry-level white-collar jobs by 2030. In her blog post, Simo acknowledged those risks, noting that OpenAI cannot stop disruption but can help workers adapt. “Our role,” she wrote, “is to ensure people become fluent in AI and are matched with companies that need their evolving skill sets.”
What Comes Next
OpenAI’s push into hiring, certification, and other application-based services underscores its ambition to become more than just the maker of ChatGPT. As Altman, Simo, and other leaders meet with President Donald Trump at the White House this week to discuss AI policy, the company is signaling that it wants to be at the center of not only AI development but also AI-driven workforce transformation.
With a mid-2026 launch date on the horizon, the OpenAI Jobs Platform may soon reshape how employers and employees connect — and redefine the future of work.
