At the Reuters NEXT conference on Thursday, investors reassured that OpenAI’s recent unveiling of artificial intelligence “apps” does not signify the end for emerging startups in the AI space. Despite concerns among AI startup founders about potential competition with OpenAI’s marketplace, investors are actively seeking innovative AI products that enhance user interactions and address profound tech challenges, such as brain-computer interfaces.

OpenAI, the creator of the widely popular ChatGPT chatbot, introduced a marketplace enabling users to access personalized AI “apps” for various tasks like math tutoring or sticker design. Sequoia Capital’s partner, Konstantine Buhler, emphasized the vast room for ongoing innovation in AI, viewing the current stage as an intermediary step in a more extensive technological revolution. Sequoia Capital invested in OpenAI in 2021, along with Microsoft, which holds a substantial stake in ChatGPT.

Avery Klemmer, partner at Thrive Capital, which recently increased its investment in OpenAI, echoed the sentiment, foreseeing opportunities for new consumer applications alongside ChatGPT. She anticipates inventive formats and engagement methods to emerge, building on the success of AI chatbots.

Despite significant investments in AI technology, analysts and investors suggest that AI product development is still in its early phases. While the costs associated with building applications using large language models remain relatively high, the rapid pace of research in the AI space could lead to a significant decline in the cost of AI inference, potentially inspiring a wave of new products, according to Jill Chase, partner at CapitalG. She highlighted the substantial impact of reduced inference costs on the types of businesses that can be created and the empowerment of various use cases by industry incumbents.