ServiceNow and OpenAI Collaborate to Develop Enterprise AI Agents

Enterprise software giant ServiceNow has entered into a three-year agreement with OpenAI Group PBC to integrate the ChatGPT creator's most advanced artificial intelligence models into its platform.

While the specific terms of the contract remain undisclosed, The Wall Street Journal reports it includes a revenue commitment from ServiceNow. The ultimate value of the deal will hinge on the number of customers who adopt OpenAI's models within the ServiceNow platform.

This partnership represents a significant boost for OpenAI, which has been actively pursuing enterprise business growth through both direct sales and third-party channels. This effort is part of a broader strategy to generate revenue capable of covering the substantial computational costs associated with running its AI models, costs that have so far outstripped revenue from consumer subscriptions.

OpenAI COO Brad Lightcap stated the deal primarily focuses on "agentic AI"—autonomous, AI-driven agents capable of operating with minimal human oversight. "ServiceNow is enabling businesses to integrate agentic AI into secure, scalable workflows designed to deliver measurable outcomes," Lightcap said. "By combining OpenAI's cutting-edge models with ServiceNow's multimodal capabilities, enterprises across industries will benefit from intelligent agents that can manage end-to-end tasks in even the most complex environments."

ServiceNow, which sells software for automating and managing business workflows in IT service management, customer service, and human resources, is among several enterprise software firms championing the agentic AI narrative. Salesforce has positioned AI agents as a core component of its flagship sales and marketing platform, while SAP SE and Workday have also launched AI agents designed to automate various business processes. These companies collectively emphasize a shared belief: embedded AI agents are crucial for unlocking tangible value from AI.

The agreement benefits ServiceNow by providing access to some of the most sophisticated AI models as an alternative or complement to its proprietary large language models. For instance, the company plans to leverage OpenAI's advanced voice models to develop customer service agents capable of near-human conversational abilities.

ServiceNow also aims to utilize OpenAI's pioneering agent capabilities, including its computer-use model that allows AI agents to interact with third-party software tools like web browsers and databases. This functionality extends to performing tasks such as updating computer operating systems and rebooting to implement changes.

ServiceNow's Chief Operating and Technology Officer, Amit Zavery, informed The Wall Street Journal that the company is also developing AI agents to help businesses access siloed data in legacy systems, such as mainframes. He added that ServiceNow's engineers would gain from OpenAI's technical guidance and expertise while developing new agents. Furthermore, ServiceNow will provide customers with "forward-deployed engineers" to demonstrate how to leverage these capabilities effectively.

Zavery emphasized that such strategic partnerships are vital for accelerating the adoption of agentic AI. "As companies transition from experimenting with AI to deploying it at scale, they require multiple AI leaders to collaborate, delivering faster and superior results," he asserted.