- OpenAI aims to launch AI “research interns” in 2026
- By 2028, Sam Altman says the goal is a fully autonomous AI researcher
- This shift towards “personal AGI” could turn AI from a chat tool into a true collaborator
Sam Altman says that within the next year, OpenAI expects its models to function as AI “research interns,” and by 2028 they could function as fully independent researchers.
It’s a cool timeline, and one that hints at what Altman calls a more “personal AGI” future, where AI doesn’t just answer questions, but actually helps you think.
These comments appeared during a recent livestream appearance in response to “When will AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) happen?” to which Altman replied “I would say that the AGI concept has become enormously overextended, and it will be this process over a number of years. Our goal is by March 2028 to have a true automated AI researcher and define what that means rather than satisfying everyone with a definition for AGI.”
It’s clear that OpenAI wants its AI capabilities to go above and beyond ChatGPT and become a tool that can truly improve workflows around the world, but that sounds easier said than done.
When does AGI happen? Sam Altman: We are in the middle of the process. It is not a single point, but a transition. “Our goal is an automated AI scientist by March 2028.” It’s about getting closer and surpassing people on several axes. pic.twitter.com/czzUQW9TOd28 October 2025
What does an “AI research intern” look like?
If Altman’s claim that OpenAI will provide the wider population with an AI research intern by 2026 is correct, what exactly will that mean?
Think of it as ChatGPT with added functionality to help you complete your tasks. You can ask this future ChatGPT to read a paper, compare it to other work and highlight what is new or needs improvement. Maybe it could even help you understand a technical concept and suggest next steps?
Today’s chatbots can do some of this, but only when you give them a structure to follow. Altman seems to envision a version of AI that begins to make useful decisions on its own.
An AI research intern sounds like it could be the next logical step for ChatGPT, but truly reliable AI requires a way to completely remove AI hallucinations so you can fully trust the answers you get. If not, you’ll have to keep double-checking the AI intern’s work, which completely defeats the purpose of the tool.
Until AI is 100% accurate, no “AI research intern” will ever be useful enough to actually help you do your job.
2028 onwards
Altman’s 2028 goal is far more dramatic. Instead of helping a human researcher, he talks about an AI that can act as one, meaning design and test ideas independently and then present the results to a human. It sounds like something more in line with a colleague than one chatbot.
If that sounds worrisome, I feel exactly the same way. Altman’s vision of an “AI researcher” could be the AI we’ve feared all along, and while it won’t be full AGI as such, it would still permeate the workforce completely.
That said, it makes sense that this is where AI could be headed. AI is good at navigating large piles of information, so letting it run small experiments is a natural step in improving its capabilities.
OpenAI has hit aggressive milestones before, but moving from today’s chatbots to true research agents is a steep climb. There are security issues, accuracy issues, and the ever-present question of who controls these systems.
Although OpenAI is confident in its timeline, the quality timeline matters more than the calendar. An AI that confidently gives wrong answers is worse than useless. You need something that can show its function, cite sources, and admit when it doesn’t know.
If Altman’s predictions are correct, the date we finally reach AGI is not necessarily important. In essence, OpenAI and its competitors are already working to turn AI from a tool that responds to us to one that works with us.
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews and opinions in your feeds. Be sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can too follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, video unboxings, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp also.
The best antivirus for all budgets
