Sam Altman says he is unsure why companies are suddenly worried about rising AI costs

AI costs are rising, and OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, has highlighted a sudden shift in corporate attitudes toward AI spending. Altman noted that skyrocketing token costs, which were barely a concern once, have now rapidly emerged as a major worry for businesses aggressively adopting generative AI tools.

Speaking at an enterprise event earlier this week, Altman described the change as abrupt. “It’s kind of a meme now, ‘My company spent my entire 2026 budget in Q1, can you make this more efficient?’” he said.