OpenAI has introduced a new offering aimed at assisting businesses in managing AI agents, positioning agent management as essential infrastructure for enterprise AI integration. This Thursday, the AI leader unveiled OpenAI Frontier, a comprehensive platform that enables companies to develop and oversee AI agents. Designed as an open system, it also supports the management of agents created outside of OpenAI's ecosystem.

Through Frontier, users can configure AI agents to interface with external data and applications, empowering them to perform tasks well beyond the platform's native capabilities. The platform also provides controls to restrict and oversee what these agents can access and accomplish. OpenAI emphasized that Frontier is structured to mirror how organizations handle human staff, featuring an onboarding procedure for agents and a feedback mechanism intended to foster continuous improvement, similar to performance reviews for employees.

OpenAI highlighted several enterprise clients, such as HP, Oracle, State Farm, and Uber. However, Frontier is initially accessible only to a select group of users, with broader availability planned for the coming months. Pricing information was not shared during a recent press briefing.

Agent-management tools have become fundamental since AI agents gained significant attention in 2024. Salesforce is recognized for its prominent product, Agentforce, launched in the fall of 2024. Other competitors have since entered the market. LangChain, established in 2022, has secured over $150 million in venture funding and is a key participant in this sector. Meanwhile, CrewAI, a newer contender, has raised more than $20 million in venture capital.

In December, the research firm Gartner published a report describing agent management platforms as the "most valuable real estate in AI" and a critical component for enterprises embracing AI. OpenAI's release of Frontier in early 2026 aligns with its stated priority of driving enterprise adoption this year. The company has also secured significant enterprise partnerships with ServiceNow and Snowflake in recent months. Providing a solution like Frontier represents a strategic move for OpenAI to establish a stronger presence in the enterprise market.