OpenAI Says Internal Power User Burns 100 Billion Tokens a Month as Outsider Spends More

3 articles · Updated · Business Insider · Jun 3

100 billion tokens a month is now OpenAI’s top confirmed internal usage, Sam Altman said, adding that one outside user has surpassed even that level.
Altman framed the jump as a measure of AI’s scale: 100,000 monthly tokens was likely world-leading 6.5 years ago, but he said that is now roughly the global per-capita average.
Cost pressure is rising alongside that usage. Altman said spending concerns barely surfaced at the start of 2026, but have since become “a huge issue” for customers.
Other companies are already tightening controls: Amazon shut its token leaderboard, while Uber reportedly imposed caps after executives questioned whether AI spending was justified.
OpenAI, whose culture has celebrated heavy internal usage, is now also pushing model efficiency and trying to deliver more value for less spend.

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Who is the world's top AI spender, and what are they building that outpaces even OpenAI's own internal use?

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