OpenAI released an updated version of its Habitat storage platform on September 11, 2026, saying it adapted the platform to manage unprecedented growth and serve over 1 billion ChatGPT users. It is the company's first major update to the platform since its initial launch in mid-2024.
OpenAI reported Habitat now handles more than 70 million requests per second, supporting products used by over 1 billion people each week, across almost 40 geographic regions. That compares with the platform’s initial capacity of handling a single database connection.
Habitat is built on a distributed system that serves more than 500 petabytes of data and targets global user growth and product demand. Availability began in mid-2024, initially for product engineers at OpenAI.
"Habitat started from a simple idea: product engineers shouldn’t need to think about database management," said Jon Lee, Member of Technical Staff. Product teams can store and retrieve data without needing to master the underlying details.
The announcement follows a period of rapid growth for OpenAI’s products. The company did not say when the next major update will be released, and noted the need to balance operational efficiency with platform stability.
Source: openai
