OpenAI’s GPT Store Has Left Some Developers in the Lurch

OpenAI first announced the option for people to build custom GPTs nearly a year ago. The company described GPTs as an automated, low-code way to create specialized experiences on top of ChatGPT, and said it believed impressive GPTs would be created by nontraditional developers like educators, coaches, and tinkerers.

The Store would be accessible to customers and builders who paid for ChatGPT Plus, Teams, or Enterprise. OpenAI also stated that it would launch a GPT-builder revenue program and that US builders would be paid based on user engagement with their GPTs. It promised to provide details on the criteria for payments.

The GPT Store officially launched in January 2024. In late March, developer Nick Dobos shared on X a screenshot of an email that he said he received from OpenAI inviting him to be a part of its revenue-sharing pilot program. Dobos’ coding GPT, Grimoire, is one of the most popular GPTs in the GPT Store, having hosted over 2 million “conversations,” or chats with the app.

According to the email Dobos shared on X, the pilot program guaranteed him a minimum payout of $1,000 per month, with the potential for additional earnings based on usage. Dobos did not respond to several emails and direct messages asking about his experience with the GPT Store since the pilot program launched.

When asked about the status of the program, OpenAI pointed WIRED to its help page, which gave a brief, high-level description of the program and said the company “hope[s] to allow more builders to monetize their GPTs down the line.”

Like Villocido, Adrian Lin, who lives in Singapore, was optimistic about the GPT Store. Lin is a full-time AI researcher who has spun up an app lab, Adrian AI Lab, on the side. He’s not formally trained in web or mobile app development, so when OpenAI said that making a GPT would require no coding skills, Lin saw it as an opportunity to build and manage his own products.

It was easy to fine-tune his models based on his intentions, Lin says.

Lin estimates that Copywriter GPT, his GPT that drafts advertising copy, has had between 500,000 and 600,000 interactions. Like Villocido’s Books GPT, Lin’s has been featured on the homepage of OpenAI’s Store.