Podcast Summary: Squawk Pod – Davos 2026: OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar (1/21/26)

Overview

In this episode of Squawk Pod, the CNBC team sits down at the World Economic Forum in Davos with Sarah Friar, Chief Financial Officer of OpenAI. The conversation covers the explosive growth in ChatGPT usage, differentiation among leading AI models, OpenAI's strategies across consumer and enterprise markets, its approach to advertising and business models, and how the company navigates trust, regulation, and ongoing legal disputes. The tone is energetic and optimistic, reflecting both the excitement and the scrutiny surrounding AI innovation at the global stage.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. AI Growth & Adoption

• Explosive Growth of ChatGPT

  • ChatGPT users jumped from less than 300 million a year ago to over 800 million today.
  • Quote: “What we're finding is consumers are going direct to ChatGPT, right? 800 million people when I was here a year ago, when we weren't even quite at 300. So we've over 3x in just a year.”
    — Sarah Friar [00:47], restated at [04:37]

• AI’s Ubiquity at Davos and Beyond

  • AI is omnipresent at the conference and in business discussions.
  • “It's a pretty exciting time for AI. You can't walk around the conference floor without talking about it.”
    — Sarah Friar [01:06], [03:16]

2. Differentiation in the AI Landscape

• Comparison with Google, Anthropic, xAI
  • OpenAI sees growing differences among major AI players but stresses the necessity to play across both consumer and enterprise.
  • Power users engage far more deeply than average users, often unlocking new capabilities and breakthroughs.
  • “We all agree there is a massive capability overhang that’s occurring... Power users are using it seven times more than just the average user.”
    — Sarah Friar [03:16]

3. Big Tech Partnerships & Distribution

• Apple, Google, and the Platform Wars

  • Despite Apple integrating Google Gemini into Siri, OpenAI remains a core part of Siri and prioritizes broad distribution.
  • Friar positions ChatGPT as not just a brand but a trusted verb in user routines.
  • “We view the iPhone ... as amazing distribution partners ... But we think we have to be broad on that distribution spectrum because users want to be able to use their technology on whatever device they use.”
    — Sarah Friar [04:37]

• Response to Gemini Deal

  • Asserts ChatGPT’s direct brand pull outweighs platform integration advantages competitors may have.
  • “No, because I think people are coming direct to ChatGPT as the brand they trust from an AI perspective.”
    — Sarah Friar [05:23]

4. Enterprise vs. Consumer Business Strategy

• Shifting Business Ratios

  • Past: 70% consumer / 30% enterprise
    Present: 60% consumer / 40% enterprise
    Projected: Nearing 50/50 by year-end
  • “While the consumer business has been growing at an extraordinary rate ... our enterprise business is also the fastest and largest in AI the world has ever seen.”
    — Sarah Friar [06:44]

• Scaling Enterprise Impact

  • Example: Transformation at BBVA bank, from 10,000 to 120,000 deployments, multinational multilingual AI rollouts.
  • “When you’re that deep in a business, they are loyal because they're getting so much value.”
    — Sarah Friar [07:26]

5. Healthcare as a Transformative AI Frontier

• AI applications in healthcare (e.g., assisting in diagnosis, health deserts, physician support).
• “66% of US physicians say they're using chatbots daily in their work. I find that amazing and so hopeful for what's available to us.”
  — Sarah Friar [05:23]

6. Introducing Advertising – A New Revenue Dimension

• Why Advertise Now?

  • Goal is expanded access; advertising as one of multiple tiers, not the primary route.
  • North Star: Model always offers best answer, not paid-for answer; strict user data policies; and clear labeling when advertisers are involved.
  • “Number one is what you see. North Star is the model always gives you the best answer, not the paid for answer ... We don't share your conversations with advertisers, we don't sell your data to advertisers.”
    — Sarah Friar [08:42]
  • “Offering people a non ad layer as well or on ramp. But why are we doing it? It comes back to access.”
    — Sarah Friar [08:42]

• Value Exchange Future

  • Hints at collaborative models with industry leaders (e.g., pharmaceuticals) and outcome-based licensing.

• Parsing Commercial Interactions

  • Commercial results are user-driven, not forced.
  • “First of all, the conversation is really meeting and gets down into consideration. At that point, we may enable an advertiser consumer very clearly to see, you’re now going to go talk to an advertiser ... It's going to be clearly labeled.”
    — Sarah Friar [10:33], [11:20]

7. IPO Prospects and Legal Distractions

• Strong Financials

  • Over $40 billion on balance sheet; $41 billion raised in last private funding.
  • “We have an incredibly strong balance sheet. We exited this year or 2025 with over $40 billion on the balance sheet. We executed the largest private fundraise ever last year, $41 billion raised.”
    — Sarah Friar [12:07]

• Elon Musk Lawsuit

  • Lawsuits seen as distractions; focused on execution and customer value.
  • “Elon has launched many lawsuits at us even since I joined ... in the end we think that they're spurious, that it's a distraction tactic. And for us, we've done an incredible job, I think, of continuing to just execute through that noise because in the end we need to show up for our customers.”
    — Sarah Friar [12:50]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “We become the noun and the verb.”
  — Sarah Friar, on ChatGPT’s brand status [04:37]
• “Health care is probably the thing where I have the most hope for what we see from AI.”
  — Interviewer, sentiment echoed by Fryer [06:14]
• “I hate to talk about lock-in, because it really should be about value.”
  — Sarah Friar, on winning and keeping both consumer and enterprise customers [06:44]
• “It's not for the benefit of humanity who can pay.”
  — Sarah Friar, on AGI’s mission to expand access [01:35], [08:42]
• “If you have value, you lock them in. It's one and the same.”
  — Interviewer [07:24]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:47]: ChatGPT’s growth and adoption; direct-to-user phenomenon
• [03:16]: AI industry differentiation and capabilities gap
• [04:37]: Apple-Google-OpenAI distribution dynamics; ChatGPT as a brand
• [05:23]: Healthcare case studies and user depth
• [06:44]: Business split and enterprise growth; value creation in B2B
• [08:42]: Introduction of advertising; maintaining trust and clear user selection
• [12:07]: Financial status, fundraising, and IPO context
• [12:50]: Legal distractions and OpenAI’s focus

Tone and Style

Sarah Friar’s language is candid, measured, and confident, consistently returning to “value” and “mission” (AGI for humanity). The conversation is forward-looking, practical, and occasionally optimistic—tempered by acknowledgment of business challenges and regulatory scrutiny.

This summary captures the full trajectory of the OpenAI CFO’s interview, providing an accessible entry point for anyone interested in the present and future of consumer and enterprise AI, market strategy, ethical models, and the business of innovation at one of the world’s most-watched technology companies.