OpenAI Shuts Sora and Scientist Platform While Merging ChatGPT and Codex Under New Product Head

OpenAI appointed Thibault Sottiaux head of core products last month. In the role he oversees ChatGPT and Codex and is combining the two into a single future super app. To support that effort, OpenAI has closed its stand-alone video app Sora and an AI platform built for scientists.

Many executives who led those teams have since left the company. Sottiaux reports directly to Greg Brockman, who currently oversees all OpenAI product teams while CEO of AGI deployment Fidji Simo is on medical leave. Sottiaux was instrumental in building Codex, which has become one of OpenAI’s fastest-growing revenue streams.

Two months ago his Codex team numbered around 40 people. Sottiaux grew up in Belgium and studied applied mathematics. He joined Google’s London offices in 2015, worked on Google Maps, then moved to Google DeepMind where he helped build infrastructure and tools used for AlphaGo, the first AI to defeat a human Go champion in 2016.

Sottiaux joined OpenAI in 2024. He initially developed tools for the company’s researchers before shifting to Codex. OpenAI announced an expanded partnership with Visa for agentic payments earlier this week.

The company has also built services that connect ChatGPT and Codex to email inboxes, Slack, and calendars. ” Over the next year, he said, ChatGPT will become “delightfully proactive” and deliver the right information at the right time. ” Sottiaux said OpenAI prefers a series of small releases rather than a single large launch because the AI field moves quickly.

He noted that much of the functionality planned for ChatGPT is already available inside the Codex app and that the two will merge in the coming weeks. Earlier agent efforts inside ChatGPT, including Operator and ChatGPT Agent, saw limited adoption because the underlying models were not reliable enough, he said. Sottiaux added that the current models now support broader use.