OpenAI has announced the opening of an office in Madrid during the second half of 2026, a move that reflects the growing importance of the Spanish market in the adoption of artificial intelligence at the enterprise level. The company, known for its ChatGPT model, thus seeks to “provide better support to its growing community of users, businesses, developers, academic institutions, and public sector partners in Spain” and “strengthen its ability to collaborate with Spanish companies as they move from experimenting with AI to integrating it more deeply into their operations.”

A dynamic market and a government bet

According to Emmanuel Marill, OpenAI's General Manager for EMEA, “Spain is consolidating itself as one of the most dynamic markets in Europe for the adoption of artificial intelligence. People, developers, and companies across the country are using our tools to be more productive, creative, and innovative. Spain combines strong user demand, forward-looking companies, a dynamic ecosystem of developers and start-ups, and an active government commitment to artificial intelligence.” The Madrid office joins existing ones in Dublin, Paris, Brussels, and Munich, consolidating the company's European presence.

The Spanish government has received the news with optimism. Óscar López, Minister for Digital Transformation and Public Function, stated: “OpenAI's arrival in Madrid shows that having adequate regulation of artificial intelligence, far from harming investment, makes us more competitive. Madrid is ready to become a capital of trustworthy AI, and Spain is determined to be a success story in the adoption of artificial intelligence by its companies, institutions, and citizens.”

Explosive growth in users and high-profile clients

OpenAI's internal data shows spectacular growth in Spain: the number of weekly active ChatGPT users has increased by more than 40% year-over-year, placing the country among the top five European markets. As for Codex, the AI agent for programming, weekly active users have multiplied by more than eleven since the beginning of 2026. Globally, ChatGPT is approaching 1 billion weekly users.

Among OpenAI's Spanish clients are giants like BBVA and Santander, educational institutions such as IE University and IESE Business School, and the tech company Factorial. BBVA, after a pilot with 3,000 licenses, is expanding ChatGPT Enterprise to its 120,000 employees in 25 countries. Santander deploys the tool among more than 30,000 users, with use cases including investment copilots, hyper-personalized customer experiences, and AI agents for internal processes. IE University and IESE have adopted ChatGPT Edu to enhance academic work, while Factorial uses Codex to optimize software development. These cases reflect how AI is being integrated into business process automation, a topic we address in our article on business process automation with n8n and AI.

The path to profitability and expansion

OpenAI, valued at over 900 billion euros, is transitioning from a non-profit entity to a traditional tech company seeking profitability. The company is heavily investing in supercomputing infrastructure and preparing for its IPO. In Europe, in addition to opening offices, it is working to comply with the demanding AI regulation (AI Act). Its strategy focuses on positioning its tools as the preferred option for managing AI agents in corporate environments, with the recent launch of the Frontier platform. For IT professionals, understanding how to delegate tasks to AI is crucial; we recommend our guide on how to delegate 40% of tickets to AI.

However, OpenAI faces significant challenges: pressure to be profitable, the enormous energy consumption of its models (with the consequent cost and environmental impact), and fierce competition from Anthropic and Google. Sustainability and efficiency are critical issues, as discussed in our analysis on advanced solutions in Microsoft Azure.

Implications for the Spanish IT ecosystem

OpenAI's arrival in Madrid not only reinforces Spain's position as a tech hub but also opens opportunities for companies and professionals. The integration of AI agents into corporate processes will require new skills in debugging and maintenance, as we explore in beyond the stack trace. Additionally, collaboration with educational institutions will boost AI training. For system administrators, adopting tools like ChatGPT Enterprise entails hardening and security challenges, similar to those described in our success story in Linux server hardening.

In summary, OpenAI's office in Spain is a milestone that reflects the maturity of the local market and confidence in its potential. The company is betting on a business model based on enterprise adoption, with top-tier clients already seeing results. However, the path to profitability and sustainability will be key to maintaining its leadership.

Original source: ComputerWorld. Analysis and adaptation by ForgeNEX.