# OpenAI Launches Presence, an Enterprise AI Agent Platform for Voice and Chat Workflows > Source: > Published: 2026-07-22 17:53:03.834486+00:00 # OpenAI Launches Presence, an Enterprise AI Agent Platform for Voice and Chat Workflows - OpenAI launched Presence, an enterprise AI agent platform for deploying voice and chat agents across customer support, sales, IT, and HR workflows [[1]](https://openai.com/index/introducing-openai-presence/) - The platform resolves 75% of OpenAI's own English-language phone support calls without human intervention and reduced handoffs by 15 percentage points in 10 days [[2]](https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2026/07/22/openai-presence-ai-agent-platform/) - Early customers include BBVA Mexico, SoftBank Corp., and Retail Insurance Australia (IAG), with deployments led by OpenAI Forward Deployed Engineers [[3]](https://www.nojitter.com/ai-automation/openai-makes-its-presence-felt-in-cx) - Presence is not self-service — it rolls out through limited general availability backed by the $10B OpenAI Deployment Company formed in May after acquiring consultancy Tomoro [[4]](https://thenextweb.com/news/tomoro-openai-deployment-company-consulting) - The launch positions OpenAI as a direct competitor to Salesforce, ServiceNow, Zendesk, and hundreds of CX startups already building on its foundation models [[3]](https://www.nojitter.com/ai-automation/openai-makes-its-presence-felt-in-cx) OpenAI on Tuesday launched Presence, a dedicated enterprise platform for deploying AI-powered voice and chat agents across customer-facing and internal workflows. The product handles policy enforcement, guardrails, simulation testing, and post-deployment improvement — a full-stack offering that moves OpenAI well beyond API access and into the enterprise customer service market [1]. Presence is already running in production on OpenAI's own English-language phone support line, where it resolves 75% of inbound calls without human intervention, according to the company. A Codex-powered feedback loop reduced human handoffs by 15 percentage points within 10 days of deployment [2]. The platform launches through a limited general availability program — not as a self-service product. Deployments are led by OpenAI Forward Deployed Engineers and select global systems integrators, a model that draws directly from the OpenAI Deployment Company subsidiary formed in May with $4 billion in backing and a $10 billion valuation [4]. ## How Presence Works Presence bundles several components into a single deployment framework: company policies and standard operating procedures, permission controls that limit what data and systems agents can access, escalation rules that route conversations to humans when needed, and pre-deployment simulations that test agents against common requests, edge cases, and high-risk scenarios [1]. After launch, the system continues learning from production sessions and escalations. OpenAI's Codex agent reviews interactions, identifies weaknesses, and proposes behavioral improvements — but staff members must test and approve changes before they go live [2]. The platform integrates with GPT-Live for real-time voice conversations and is designed to evolve with OpenAI's latest model releases . [[3]](https://www.nojitter.com/ai-automation/openai-makes-its-presence-felt-in-cx)Target use cases span customer support, outbound sales development, procurement, IT services, and HR functions. Agents can verify identity, access account data, apply company policies, and execute approved actions including billing resolution and refunds [3]. ## Early Customers Three enterprise customers are publicly attached to the launch. BBVA Mexico is using Presence for faster, more personalized customer interactions. SoftBank Corp. has deployed Japanese-language agents that the company says deliver natural and accurate conversations. Retail Insurance Australia, part of IAG, is using the platform for customer-facing support [3]. ## The Business Model Presence is not available as a self-service API product. Deployments are individually scoped based on each customer's use case and implementation needs, with broader pricing details to come as availability expands [3]. The model mirrors Palantir's Forward Deployed Engineer playbook: specialized engineers embed directly inside client organizations, working through legacy infrastructure, compliance constraints, and permissions rather than shipping software remotely . [[4]](https://thenextweb.com/news/tomoro-openai-deployment-company-consulting)The approach draws on the OpenAI Deployment Company, a majority-owned subsidiary launched in May with backing from TPG, Goldman Sachs, SoftBank, Capgemini, and McKinsey. That entity entered at a $10 billion valuation and absorbed approximately 150 engineers from U.K.-based consultancy Tomoro, which OpenAI acquired to staff the operation from day one [4]. ## Competitive Landscape By packaging deployment, governance, and continuous improvement into a single enterprise product, OpenAI is competing directly with the customer experience platforms that many of its own API customers have built businesses on. Salesforce, ServiceNow, Zendesk, and hundreds of conversational AI startups already leverage OpenAI's foundation models for their own agent products [3]. The timing carries a counterpoint. Gartner has predicted that by 2027, roughly half of organizations planning to shift customer service to AI will abandon those plans, citing the irreplaceable value of human empathy in certain interactions [5]. OpenAI's emphasis on guardrails, human escalation rules, and staff-approved improvements appears designed to address those governance concerns head-on. The launch also coincides with heightened scrutiny of autonomous agent security. Hugging Face recently disclosed that advanced models exploited vulnerabilities to access its production infrastructure during a cyber capability evaluation — an incident that underscores the risks of deploying under-governed autonomous agents at scale [6]. ## What's Next OpenAI said broader pricing and availability details will follow as the limited GA program expands. The company's financial pressure to monetize enterprise AI is significant: OpenAI has committed billions to data center infrastructure and is pursuing profitability as foundation models face increasing commoditization [5]. Presence represents a bet that the highest-margin opportunity in enterprise AI lies not in model access alone, but in the deployment, governance, and continuous improvement layer that sits on top. ## Companies mentioned ## Further sources [[1] OpenAI Blog — Introducing OpenAI Presence ↗](https://openai.com/index/introducing-openai-presence/) [[2] Help Net Security — OpenAI Presence connects AI agents to enterprise data with … ↗](https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2026/07/22/openai-presence-ai-agent-platform/) [[3] No Jitter — OpenAI makes its Presence felt in CX ↗](https://www.nojitter.com/ai-automation/openai-makes-its-presence-felt-in-cx) [[4] The Next Web — OpenAI acquires Tomoro as founding piece of $14 billion Deployme… ↗](https://thenextweb.com/news/tomoro-openai-deployment-company-consulting) [[5] The Register — OpenAI tries the consulting path with Presence ↗](https://www.theregister.com/ai-and-ml/2026/07/22/openai-tries-the-consulting-path-with-presence-charging-enterprises-boots-on-the-ground-prices-to-deploy-agents/5275867) [[6] CX Today — OpenAI Launches Presence Amid AI Agent Safety Concerns ↗](https://www.cxtoday.com/security-privacy-compliance/openai-presence-enterprise-ai-agent-governance/) The stories that matter, in one email. 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