OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has made another significant domain acquisition by purchasing chat.com in what appears to be a multi-million dollar transaction. The domain was previously owned by HubSpot’s founder and CTO, Dharmesh Shah, who had initially acquired it for $15.5 million.
Transaction Details
The high-profile domain purchase was confirmed when OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman made a succinct announcement on X (formerly Twitter), simply stating “Chat.com.” The domain now redirects users to ChatGPT, OpenAI’s flagship conversational AI platform.
Domain History
Dharmesh Shah had originally purchased the domain for a planned project. While the exact selling price remains undisclosed, Shah hinted at a profitable transaction, noting that he rarely sells domains at a loss. The transfer of ownership is currently pending, as indicated by ICANN’s WHOIS records.
OpenAI’s Domain Strategy
This acquisition follows OpenAI’s pattern of securing premium domain names:
- In February 2023, the company acquired AI.com from Google
- The AI.com purchase was reportedly valued at approximately $11 million
- Both AI.com and Chat.com now direct users to ChatGPT
Market Context
The purchase demonstrates OpenAI’s aggressive expansion strategy and commitment to establishing a strong digital presence. As the world’s most valuable AI startup, these strategic domain acquisitions reinforce the company’s position in the competitive AI landscape and simplify user access to their services.
The domain acquisition comes at a time when OpenAI continues to grow significantly, having recently secured a $6.6 billion funding round that elevated the company’s valuation to $157 billion. This latest domain purchase further solidifies OpenAI’s commitment to building a robust and easily accessible AI ecosystem.