OpenAI and Anthropic are pushing deeper into the artificial intelligence market through new acquisition talks. Both companies have created joint ventures with private equity firms. Now they want to buy services companies that help businesses deploy AI tools. Moreover, people familiar with the talks said OpenAI has already reached advanced stages on three possible deals.
The planned acquisitions would bring hundreds of engineers and consultants into their growing operations. These specialists help companies adapt AI models to real business needs. They also connect the technology to internal data, software systems, and daily workflows. As a result, businesses can use AI more effectively across large organizations.
Until now, both companies focused mainly on building stronger and more advanced AI models. However, deploying those models at scale requires a different set of skills. Companies need experts who can customize systems and update them as business demands change. Therefore, OpenAI and Anthropic are now looking to buy that expertise rather than build it slowly.
OpenAI is raising about $4 billion from 19 investors for its new venture. Reuters previously reported that investors include TPG, Bain Capital, and Brookfield Asset Management. The venture is called The Deployment Company and is expected to be announced later this week. Meanwhile, Anthropic is raising $1.5 billion with backing from Blackstone, Hellman & Friedman, and Goldman Sachs.
Most of the new capital is expected to fund acquisitions of engineering services and consulting firms. Neither OpenAI nor Anthropic commented on the discussions. Still, the strategy highlights an important reality in enterprise AI. Although many view AI as a high-margin software business, companies still depend heavily on skilled and labor-intensive services.
Furthermore, industry leaders say this shortage of talent remains one of the biggest barriers to wider adoption. Jon Gray said more skilled workers could remove a major bottleneck. The strategy also mirrors the approach of Palantir, which places engineers inside client operations. In the end, these AI services deals could help OpenAI and Anthropic reshape a fragmented consulting market.
