Did Sam Altman Just Drop Millions on a Domain Name? Here's How Much Is OpenAI's Secretive Chat.com

In a savvy business move, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman kept attention this week with a single, innocuous tweet: chat.com. Clickers were neatly redirected to OpenAI's much-touted AI-powered chatbot ChatGPT.

Far from simply a redirect, the acquisition of this domain speaks to the continued effort of OpenAI to consolidate its branding and expand its influence within the conversational AI space. It's just a URL, but its price is enough to give you the shock value you need for a week.

How Much is Chat.com Domain?

Did Sam Altman Just Drop Millions on a Domain Name?

One highly prized domain name for chat.com was owned by Dharmesh Shah, the cofounder and CTO of HubSpot. In early 2023, Shah bought the extremely costly chat.com domain for a staggering $15.5 million, The Verge reports.

It was that same year when Shah admitted to having sold the domain again, this time mum as to the identity of the buyer or even the exact sale amount. Shah did admit that it was a profitable sale.

Then, Altman confirmed that OpenAI bought chat.com, and Shah further added to the mystery by claiming in an X (formerly Twitter) post that there might have been shared aspects of the sale, perhaps it was not as simple as cash, after all.

Why It Matters in Dropping 'GPT' Within the Overall Brand Evolution for Open AI

The deal fits with a generally larger effort at rebranding. A cleaner, more universal domain name is a move away from the technical "GPT" designation toward one that reflects a name that can be valued by more people.

It comes just after OpenAI launched in September the "o1" reasoning models—a move the company believes will push the firm toward the simplification of nomenclature. So said Bob McGrew, former chief research officer at OpenAI, on the new model names: meant to be more intuitive of OpenAI's mission.

Domain Hoarding: The Internet's High-Stakes Real Estate Game

The sale of chat.com is symptomatic of a trend towards increasingly expensive domain deals. Domain names that are unusual and memorable have always been seen as the digital version of real estate.

Companies fight over vanity URLs that can enhance their brand image. Recently, AI startup Friend made headlines by buying friend.com for $1.8 million and then raising $2.5 million in funding.

In contrast, OpenAI's $15 million+ investment in chat.com, if paid in full or shares, is very small compared to the company just closing on a $6.6 billion funding round.

The Value of Chat.com for Open AI Future

OpenAI is projected to continue shaping the conversations that take place around conversational AI. A simple yet memorable URL provides access to AI tools and leverages opportunities for further growth in this rapidly changing world of artificial intelligence.

This strategic acquisition for OpenAI underlines a commitment to brand clarity and user accessibility, leaving it well-poised for expansion.

Well, Altman knows that this was necessary in the competition against other AI companies. It's a brilliant take to give users a chance to access ChatGPT in the easiest way possible. On top of that, it's one of the keys to win the chatbot war—the modern war of tech giants in AI space.