WSJ Tech News Briefing The Promise and Peril of Sam Altman’s Dealmaking
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Oct 24, 2025 Jinjoo Lee, a Heard on the Street columnist at The Wall Street Journal, discusses how ChatGPT's Instant Checkout feature could disrupt retail landscapes, potentially undermining customer loyalty and ad revenue. Berber Jin, a tech reporter focusing on AI and dealmaking, shares insights into Sam Altman's ambitious partnerships with giants like Nvidia and SoftBank, highlighting both the appeal and risks of his high-stakes approach. The conversation reveals how Altman's persuasive skills are reshaping the AI industry and the financial implications for OpenAI.
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Limit Instant Checkout Exposure
- Try selective participation when enabling Instant Checkout on platforms like ChatGPT to protect customer relationships.
- Limit direct-purchase offerings to certain categories so customers still visit your site and preserve ad revenue.
Invest In Your Own Shopping Chatbot
- Build or improve your own shopping chatbot to compete with universal chatbots like ChatGPT.
- Make your chatbot compelling so customers prefer it over third-party platforms.
Amazon Protects Its Advertising Moat
- Amazon is notably sitting out of Instant Checkout and blocking data scraping to protect its ad business.
- Its vast advertising revenue motivates Amazon to develop internal AI rather than feed external platforms.