What is the story about?
OpenAI has formed partnerships with some of the world’s largest consulting firms as it seeks to strengthen its position in the enterprise AI market. The collaborations, announced this week, will see Boston Consulting Group, McKinsey & Co., Accenture, and Capgemini support the sale and implementation of OpenAI’s newly launched Frontier AI agent platform, helping organisations redesign workflows, integrate AI tools, and manage large-scale transformation.
Frontier, introduced earlier this month, enables businesses and organisations to build, deploy, supervise, and govern AI agents. The launch forms part of OpenAI’s broader effort to maintain momentum in the enterprise AI sector against rival Anthropic, which has made significant gains over the past year with its Claude Code and Claude Cowork products.
The new alliances could present challenges for established software-as-a-service providers, including Salesforce, Workday, Microsoft, and ServiceNow. These companies rely heavily on major consulting firms to market and deploy their products across corporations and governments.
Many SaaS providers have been developing their own AI agent platforms. However, in recent weeks, investors have driven down their share prices amid concerns that customers may opt for OpenAI’s or Anthropic’s agent products instead. There are also fears that organisations could turn to AI coding tools such as OpenAI’s Codex and Anthropic’s Claude Code to build proprietary systems, potentially reducing reliance on traditional SaaS offerings.
Under the arrangements, described by OpenAI as Frontier Alliances, each consultancy will establish dedicated practice groups and assemble teams certified in OpenAI’s technology. OpenAI’s own “forward deployed engineers” will work alongside consultancy teams during client engagements.
Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey are positioned primarily as strategy and operating model partners, advising leadership teams on where and how to deploy AI agents at scale. Accenture and Capgemini will focus on end-to-end systems integration, including data architecture, cloud infrastructure, and connecting Frontier to the software systems enterprises already use.
OpenAI characterises Frontier as a “semantic layer for the enterprise”—a unified platform that enables AI agents to navigate business software, carry out workflows, and make decisions across an organisation’s technology stack, including CRM systems, HR platforms, and internal ticketing tools. Early enterprise adopters include Intuit, State Farm, Thermo Fisher, and Uber.
Bob Sternfels, McKinsey’s global managing partner, said in a statement accompanying the Frontier Alliances announcement that CEOs must “rewire their businesses, reimagining domains and evolving how their people work” to capture value from agentic AI. BCG CEO Christoph Schweizer echoed that sentiment, noting that AI transformation must be “linked to strategy, built into redesigned processes, and adopted at scale.”
Julie Sweet, Accenture’s CEO, said in a statement that her firm was “excited to deepen our work with OpenAI” and “to help clients turn AI into real outcomes.”
“Business transformation requires more than great models,” she said. “It requires end-to-end execution across technology, data, security, and change management.”
For investors in enterprise software companies, the announcement is likely to heighten unease following an already challenging period. The Frontier Alliances initiative underscores the possibility that customers could favour OpenAI’s agent orchestration platform over conventional SaaS products.
The move may also strain relationships between SaaS providers and consulting firms. Accenture, Capgemini, McKinsey, and Boston Consulting Group maintain close ties with the very software companies that Frontier could potentially displace. For Salesforce, Microsoft, and ServiceNow, the prospect of BCG and McKinsey promoting an alternative platform to senior executives is unlikely to be welcomed.
Frontier, introduced earlier this month, enables businesses and organisations to build, deploy, supervise, and govern AI agents. The launch forms part of OpenAI’s broader effort to maintain momentum in the enterprise AI sector against rival Anthropic, which has made significant gains over the past year with its Claude Code and Claude Cowork products.
Pressure mounts on established SaaS providers
The new alliances could present challenges for established software-as-a-service providers, including Salesforce, Workday, Microsoft, and ServiceNow. These companies rely heavily on major consulting firms to market and deploy their products across corporations and governments.
Many SaaS providers have been developing their own AI agent platforms. However, in recent weeks, investors have driven down their share prices amid concerns that customers may opt for OpenAI’s or Anthropic’s agent products instead. There are also fears that organisations could turn to AI coding tools such as OpenAI’s Codex and Anthropic’s Claude Code to build proprietary systems, potentially reducing reliance on traditional SaaS offerings.
Structure of the Frontier Alliances
Under the arrangements, described by OpenAI as Frontier Alliances, each consultancy will establish dedicated practice groups and assemble teams certified in OpenAI’s technology. OpenAI’s own “forward deployed engineers” will work alongside consultancy teams during client engagements.
Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey are positioned primarily as strategy and operating model partners, advising leadership teams on where and how to deploy AI agents at scale. Accenture and Capgemini will focus on end-to-end systems integration, including data architecture, cloud infrastructure, and connecting Frontier to the software systems enterprises already use.
A unified platform for enterprise systems
OpenAI characterises Frontier as a “semantic layer for the enterprise”—a unified platform that enables AI agents to navigate business software, carry out workflows, and make decisions across an organisation’s technology stack, including CRM systems, HR platforms, and internal ticketing tools. Early enterprise adopters include Intuit, State Farm, Thermo Fisher, and Uber.
Bob Sternfels, McKinsey’s global managing partner, said in a statement accompanying the Frontier Alliances announcement that CEOs must “rewire their businesses, reimagining domains and evolving how their people work” to capture value from agentic AI. BCG CEO Christoph Schweizer echoed that sentiment, noting that AI transformation must be “linked to strategy, built into redesigned processes, and adopted at scale.”
Julie Sweet, Accenture’s CEO, said in a statement that her firm was “excited to deepen our work with OpenAI” and “to help clients turn AI into real outcomes.”
“Business transformation requires more than great models,” she said. “It requires end-to-end execution across technology, data, security, and change management.”
Investor concerns and industry tensions
For investors in enterprise software companies, the announcement is likely to heighten unease following an already challenging period. The Frontier Alliances initiative underscores the possibility that customers could favour OpenAI’s agent orchestration platform over conventional SaaS products.
The move may also strain relationships between SaaS providers and consulting firms. Accenture, Capgemini, McKinsey, and Boston Consulting Group maintain close ties with the very software companies that Frontier could potentially displace. For Salesforce, Microsoft, and ServiceNow, the prospect of BCG and McKinsey promoting an alternative platform to senior executives is unlikely to be welcomed.
