That’s what OpenAI put on the table on June 14 to build a consulting certification network.
Not a new model. A network of people who know how to implement the ones they already have.
The bet underneath it: model access stopped being the moat.
Implementation expertise is.
The numbers:
300,000 certified consultants targeted by year-end.
Three tiers. Select, Advanced, Elite.
Specializations in Codex, cybersecurity, and agents.
The Launch partners include Accenture, Bain, BCG, McKinsey, PwC, Artium, and Eliza.
Anthropic got there first. A $100M program in March. 10,000 consultants already certified.
OpenAI’s own words: implementation expertise, not model access, is now the limiting factor for seeing value from AI in the enterprise.
Read that again.
The companies building the models are telling you the model was never the hard part.
It was never about the capabilities of the model.
It was always about how we (all of us) could use those capabilities to create more value.
And now OpenAI has made it clear.
Only one thing matters in the use of AI.
Integration.
Integration into the workflows of an organization.
Integration into the work habit of workers.
Integration into the mindset of leaders.
The best – the 4% who are succeeding – have been doing this for years now. That’s why a small group in every vertical is starting to separate themselves from the pack.
If you want AI on your side, there is a three step process:
1. Know the business outcome you need
2. Understand the workflow that needs rewiring or reimagining.
3. Work with the people doing the work.
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We’ve been doing this since January of 2023.
