OpenAI buys Sky, the app that integrates AI directly into Mac | Keryc
OpenAI announced the acquisition of Software Applications Incorporated, the company behind Sky, on October 23, 2025. What does it mean that a company like OpenAI buys an app that ‘floats’ over your desktop and understands what’s on screen? Let’s put it in plain language. (openai.com)
What OpenAI announced
The main news is simple: OpenAI bought Software Applications Incorporated, the developers of Sky, and the Sky team will join OpenAI to bring that experience into ChatGPT and other products. The company made it clear the acquisition is part of a strategy to integrate AI more directly into the tools people use every day. (openai.com)
Important facts: the acquisition was announced on October 23, 2025 and the note includes a statement about a passive investment related to Sam Altman. The deal was led by Nick Turley and Fidji Simo and approved by independent board committees. ()
Sky is a natural language interface for macOS that sits on top of what you’re doing on the desktop and can understand the context of your windows and apps. Practically speaking, Sky can read what’s on screen — for example an email or a webpage — and help you take actions without switching apps. It’s a way to put AI to work on real tasks, not just answer questions. (sky.app)
Sound familiar? Several of Sky’s founders and designers come from projects related to Shortcuts and user experience at Apple, which explains the attention to detail in the macOS integration. Press coverage before the acquisition highlighted features like generating summaries, running actions through integrations with Calendar, Messages, Finder, Mail and other apps, and the ability to create custom tools with scripts and shortcuts. (macrumors.com)
What changes for you as a user
If you use a Mac and like saving repetitive steps, this could be good news. By integrating Sky’s technology and experience into ChatGPT and OpenAI products, AI could move from being a text responder to an assistant that acts inside your workflows. Want to send a link, summarize it and message it without copying and pasting? That’s exactly the example shown in early demos. (macrumors.com)
But attention: there are practical questions that matter to you:
Privacy and permissions: for Sky to understand your screen it needs macOS permissions. How those permissions are handled, where the data is processed and what gets stored will be key topics. OpenAI said it will integrate the tech but hasn’t detailed all the concrete controls yet. (openai.com)
Availability and price: Sky was in launch phase with a waitlist; OpenAI didn’t publish a final pricing plan today, only that they’ll work on the integration. We’ll need to wait for more announcements. (sky.app)
What to expect in the coming months
OpenAI asked us to watch for future updates as they integrate Sky’s technology into ChatGPT and other products. That suggests a gradual process: first bring contextual understanding and automated actions, then refine the experience and privacy controls. The public note also mentions internal leadership on the deal, which usually signals strategic priority. (openai.com)
A concrete example
Imagine you’re reading an article in Safari and want to share a summary via iMessage. With Sky (or its future integration), you could ask in natural language: "Summarize this article and send it to Ana with an informal message." The AI would generate the summary, craft the message and send it — all without you copying, opening Messages and pasting. If that sounds useful, you’re not alone. Journalists and reviewers who tried Sky before the acquisition described similar flows as a change in how they use the Mac. (macrumors.com)
Should I worry? Is it a bad sign that there's investment tied to well-known figures?
The acquisition note includes a mention of a passive investment linked to Sam Altman. OpenAI declared it publicly in the announcement. That kind of transparency is positive, but if you care about governance and incentives, it’s worth reading the full section of the official announcement to understand the context. (openai.com)
Final reflection
This is another step we already expected: it’s not just building more powerful models, it’s bringing AI into the places where you work and making it useful without forcing you to change how you work. Are you excited about AI doing tasks for you on the desktop? Worried about privacy or control? Both reactions make sense. OpenAI promises to bring Sky’s experience onboard; now we’ll see how they implement it and what choices they give you as a user.
To read the original sources: visit OpenAI’s official note or Sky’s page to see how they described the app before the acquisition. (openai.com)
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OpenAI buys Sky, the app that integrates AI directly into Mac
