OpenAI starts taking on Microsoft Office with new updates
Office software is becoming a place where people and AI agents work side by side, reshaping who owns the workplace.
Key takeaways
- At DevDay in San Francisco, OpenAI launched Space, a shared workspace in ChatGPT where co-workers collaborate with the chatbot and AI agents.
- OpenAI's Dots are new AI agent personas that can carry out work tasks on a user's behalf.
- OpenAI also launched Pages, a word processor built for human and agent collaboration, and announced collaborative slides.
- The moves put OpenAI in competition with its long-time partner and investor Microsoft in workplace software.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2026) 'OpenAI starts taking on Microsoft Office with new updates', 311 Institute, 29 September. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/openai-office-tools-space-pages-slides/ (Accessed: 25 October 2026).
OpenAI has been a close partner of Microsoft from the get go with Microsoft pumping billions of dollars into the company, but the Artificial Intelligence (AI) lab is increasingly going after the company’s bread and butter, workplace software, with new features that closely resemble an office software suite like Microsoft’s.
At its DevDay developer conference in San Francisco OpenAI announced several new ChatGPT features designed for office workers. Most notably, OpenAI launched a feature called Space, a shared workspace inside ChatGPT where co-workers can collaborate with the chatbot and with their own Dots, OpenAI’s newly launched AI agent personas that can carry out tasks on a user’s behalf, on a range of work tasks.
The Future of AI, Software, Work, and Leadership, a keynote by futurist Matthew Griffin
“Your pages and files all live together in Space, like they would in a drive,” said CEO Sam Altman during the presentation. “But spaces feel alive.” Altman said users can give a page specific instructions, such as checking a team channel and updating the page with what it finds.
OpenAI also launched Pages, a companion word processor that the company describes as “a new type of document, built for human and agent collaboration.” It appears to be OpenAI’s answer to Google Docs and Microsoft Word. Users can “write, research, generate charts, create images, or visualise information” in it, OpenAI says.
OpenAI has also announced its answer to PowerPoint with what it calls collaborative slides. These slides can be created by merely talking about them within ChatGPT. Once the slides are generated, multiple workers and agents can work together within them and will have the ability to leave comments and edit them. Slides isn’t available quite yet but will roll out to users in the coming weeks, an OpenAI representative said.
As OpenAI edges into Microsoft’s territory, Microsoft and other software companies like Salesforce are busy trying to become more like OpenAI. Over the past year, both companies have released a slew of AI products as the software industry attempts to keep up with the shifting landscape.
First published on Fanatical Futurist on 29 September 2026.
311 Intelligence
What this means
Analysis by the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit
The big shift is office software built for people and AI agents together. Space, Pages and collaborative slides put OpenAI's agents inside the documents where work happens, and pit OpenAI against its own partner, Microsoft. Our Starburst data shows the direction: we rate Agentic Artificial Intelligence, AI that can decide and act on its own to reach a goal, a Prepare technology with wide use expected by 2028. Conversational Interfaces, which let you talk to a computer as you would a person, already reached wide use in 2025.
What it means by sector.
- Software vendors: Microsoft and Salesforce are racing to become more like OpenAI. We track AI Agents Replacing Seats, agents pushing vendors from per-user licences to usage pricing, as a Prepare trend with wide use by 2029.
- Every organisation: Dots agents can carry out tasks on a user's behalf inside shared workspaces. We track Human and AI Teams, managers directing AI agents alongside people, as a Prepare trend with wide use by 2029.
- IT and procurement: slides made just by talking within ChatGPT point to the kind of change we track as Generative User Interfaces, screens built by AI as you work, a Watch technology with wide use by 2044.
What to do now.
- Pilot one agent-enabled workspace with a small team and measure the time it saves on real documents.
- Set clear rules on what agents may read, edit and share before staff start using them on company files.
- Review office software contracts now, as per-user licences may not fit a workforce of people and agents.
The Starburst technologies behind this story
From the 311 Technology Starburst (first product, expected wide use and readiness):
| Technology | Category | First product | Wide use | Action | TRL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agentic Artificial Intelligence | Intelligence | 2024 | 2028 | Prepare | 8 |
| Conversational Interfaces | User Interfaces | 2011 | 2025 | Act now | 9 |
| Generative User Interfaces | User Interfaces | 2024 | 2044 | Watch | 7 |
And the trends they feed, from the 311 Trends Starburst:
| Trend | Wide use | Action |
|---|---|---|
| AI Agents Replacing Seats | 2029 | Prepare |
| Human and AI Teams | 2029 | Prepare |
How this moves the trend
The partnership and the rivalry have grown together. Microsoft first dropped $1 billion on OpenAI in 2019, then in 2023 brought its ChatGPT powered Copilot to the masses. In 2024 Sam Altman said personal AI agents are about to become AI's killer feature. Space, Pages and Dots now put those agents into OpenAI's own office tools.
Go deeper with 311
- The 311 Starburst Centre: every technology and trend above, with timelines and readiness.
- 311 Vantage: ask what AI agent workspaces mean for your organisation and get a plain English executive brief.
- The Exponential Technology Codex and the Annual Trends Codex: the technologies and trends reshaping every industry.
- Book a briefing or keynote on the future of AI and work for your board or leadership team.
FAQ
What new office tools did OpenAI announce at DevDay?
OpenAI launched Space, a shared workspace inside ChatGPT, and Dots, AI agent personas that carry out tasks for users. It also launched Pages, a word processor for human and agent collaboration, and announced collaborative slides that will roll out in the coming weeks.
What is OpenAI's Space feature?
Space is a shared workspace inside ChatGPT where co-workers collaborate with the chatbot and with their own Dots agents. Pages and files live together in it like a drive, and users can give a page instructions, such as checking a team channel and updating the page.
How does OpenAI Pages compare with Microsoft Word?
Pages appears to be OpenAI's answer to Google Docs and Microsoft Word. OpenAI calls it a new type of document built for human and agent collaboration, where users can write, research, generate charts, create images or visualise information.
Why is OpenAI competing with Microsoft?
Microsoft has been a close partner and investor in OpenAI from the start, but OpenAI is increasingly going after workplace software, Microsoft's bread and butter. Meanwhile Microsoft and Salesforce are releasing a slew of AI products to keep up.
About the author
Matthew Griffin Founder, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
Read full bio
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 15-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity program, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
Regularly featured in the global media including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Khaleej Times, Telegraph, TIME, ViacomCBS, WIRED, and the WSJ, Matthews mission is to help organisations create a fair and sustainable future whose benefits are shared by everyone irrespective of their ability, background, or circumstances.
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