ChatGPT Apps explained
OpenAI announced Apps in ChatGPT yesterday, introducing a new way for businesses to build interactive experiences that appear within ChatGPT conversations. For Australian brands, this development opens up interesting possibilities for how customers discover and interact with services.
What Are ChatGPT Apps?
ChatGPT Apps are interactive applications built using OpenAI's Apps SDK that function inside ChatGPT conversations. Rather than directing users to external websites, these apps provide functionality directly within the chat interface. Users can discover apps by naming them explicitly or ChatGPT may suggest relevant apps during conversations.
The Apps SDK builds on the Model Context Protocol (MCP), allowing developers to create both the logic and interface of their applications. Launch partners include Zillow, Spotify, Canva, Coursera, Expedia, Booking.com, and Figma, with more brands scheduled to join throughout the year.
The technology supports various display formats including inline, picture-in-picture, and full-screen layouts. Apps can connect directly to brand backends, enabling existing customers to log in and access premium features.
How This Could Work for Australian Businesses
The opportunities for Australian brands are compelling, and the work required to realise them is well worth considering.
Carsales operates Australia's largest automotive marketplace. A ChatGPT app could allow users discussing car purchases to search inventory, compare vehicles, and view detailed specifications without leaving their conversation. Someone asking "I need a family SUV under $45,000" could interact with Carsales' listings through an embedded interface, filter by features, and schedule test drives.
Building this experience requires structuring their vehicle database for AI consumption, developing APIs for real-time inventory access, and creating conversation flows that handle automotive decision-making. The work is substantial, but the result would be a genuinely helpful experience that meets customers exactly where they are in their buying journey.
REA Group (realestate.com.au) has a similar opportunity. When Australians discuss property in ChatGPT, an REA app could surface listings, provide suburb data, and enable inspection bookings. The user experience could be more intuitive than traditional property search websites, particularly for users who want a conversational approach to finding their next home.
The work involves ensuring data freshness, handling regional variations, and creating experiences that adapt to different property types and buying situations. REA would structure their data to handle Melbourne apartment searches differently from Sydney house hunts, while maintaining accuracy across auction dates, price guides, and availability. It's a meaningful undertaking that would position them at the forefront of how Australians search for property.
Tourism Victoria could develop an app that appears when users plan Melbourne visits. Rather than navigating multiple tourism websites, visitors could receive personalised itineraries, attraction information, and booking capabilities within their planning conversation. For international visitors unfamiliar with Melbourne's geography or attractions, this would significantly improve the planning experience.
The work includes maintaining content accuracy across seasons, keeping event information current, and integrating with booking systems for attractions, accommodation, and transport. Tourism Victoria would be building something that genuinely helps visitors experience the best of Victoria, which aligns perfectly with their core mission.
The Australian Open presents an excellent case for event-based applications. During the tournament, tennis fans asking ChatGPT about matches, players, or tickets could interact with an AO app providing live scores, player statistics, and ticketing options. The time-bound nature of the event makes this an achievable first step into conversational experiences.
Tennis Australia would be building an experience that brings fans closer to the action and makes attending the tournament more accessible. The work involves handling peak traffic during major matches and integrating with existing ticketing infrastructure, but the result would be a more engaging way for fans worldwide to connect with the Australian Open.
How Time Under Tension Can Help
At Time Under Tension, we help Australian businesses build AI-native experiences. Our approach focuses on creating genuine value for customers while making smart use of new technology.
Strategic Planning – We work with brands to identify where ChatGPT Apps can genuinely improve customer experience. This includes analysing how your customers currently use conversational interfaces, mapping use cases that deliver real value, and designing an approach that complements your existing digital properties.
We help you understand where conversational interfaces excel and build a roadmap that makes sense for your business.
Experience Design – We design conversational experiences that feel natural and helpful. This means identifying which aspects of your service work brilliantly in conversational contexts and creating progressive engagement patterns that guide customers smoothly from simple queries to complex interactions.
Our design process creates experiences that customers will actually use rather than novelties that generate initial interest but little ongoing engagement.
Technical Implementation – We build ChatGPT Apps using the Apps SDK, handling backend integration, data structuring, and interface development. We work with your existing systems and our development process includes real user testing to ensure experiences work well before launch.
Data Preparation – Effective ChatGPT Apps need properly structured data. We audit your existing data architecture, identify what needs updating, and implement the improvements that will support conversational interfaces. This work typically benefits other digital initiatives as well, making it a worthwhile investment beyond just ChatGPT Apps.
Moving Forward
The launch of ChatGPT Apps represents an opportunity for Australian brands to meet customers in new ways. The technology is mature enough to build with, and the early movers will gain valuable experience understanding how their customers want to engage conversationally.
The work required is significant but manageable, particularly with the right expertise. The brands that approach ChatGPT Apps thoughtfully and build experiences that genuinely help customers will establish strong positions as conversational interfaces become more common.
Australian businesses that start exploring this space now will be well-positioned as customer expectations evolve toward more conversational, AI-native interactions.
If you're interested in exploring ChatGPT Apps for your brand, we'd be happy to discuss what's possible and what the work would involve.
Contact us: hello@timeundertension.ai