OpenAI turns ChatGPT into a platform with native apps from Spotify, Zillow

OpenAI is making its most aggressive platform play yet. Starting today, ChatGPT is no longer just a chatbot you prompt — it’s a place where third-party apps live. The company is rolling out a new generation of interactive apps inside ChatGPT, built on a new open-source Apps SDK, alongside launch partners including Spotify, Zillow, Expedia, Canva, Figma, Coursera, and Booking.com.

The mechanics are straightforward. You can summon an app by name — typing something like “Spotify, make a playlist for my party this Friday” pulls the music service directly into the conversation. More interestingly, ChatGPT will also proactively suggest apps based on what you’re discussing. If you’re chatting about moving, the Zillow app might surface unprompted, letting you browse listings on an interactive map without ever leaving the thread. That ambient discovery is where things get sticky.

For developers, the pitch is access to over 800 million users. The SDK is built on the Model Context Protocol (MCP), an open standard OpenAI is championing to let models connect to external tools. Crucially, it’s not just a text-based API integration. Developers can define their own interactive UI components and chat logic, and connect users to existing backend accounts. OpenAI says it will start accepting app submissions for publication later this year and will eventually share monetization details — a piece of the puzzle they’re keeping deliberately vague for now.

Apps are available today for logged-in users outside the EU, Switzerland, and the UK on all paid plans and the free tier. The EU launch is promised “soon.” Zillow’s SVP of Product, Josh Weisberg, framed it as making real estate “feel more human,” calling the integration a “first-of-its-kind experience.” That’s corporate hyperbole, but the underlying shift is real: OpenAI is betting that the next app store won’t be on your phone’s home screen. It’ll be inside the AI you’re already talking to.