The OpenAI Economic Research Exchange 2026 is a research collaboration programme designed to support rigorous external research on the economic impacts of AI. Through the Exchange, selected researchers will work on carefully scoped projects with OpenAI Economic Research. Each selected project receives a one-time research grant for the principal investigator and monthly support for a research assistant or designated researcher.
Programme Snapshot
Programme: OpenAI Economic Research Exchange
Category: Research Collaboration and Grant Opportunity
Organizer: OpenAI Economic Research
Application Deadline: July 5, 2026
Proposal Decisions Released: July 31, 2026
Project Timelines: Short-term projects of 2–6 months or medium-term projects of 6–12 months
Research Focus: Economic impacts of AI
Funding Support: $25,000 one-time research grant and $7,500 monthly RA stipend or contractor compensation
About the OpenAI Economic Research Exchange 2026
The OpenAI Economic Research Exchange is a new platform for external research on how AI affects workers, firms, institutions, and the broader economy. The programme aims to support high-quality empirical research grounded in real-world evidence.
Selected researchers will conduct structured, project-based collaborations with OpenAI Economic Research. Projects will include defined milestones, data governance, and review processes.
The Exchange is intended for research that uses approved and privacy-protected OpenAI tools or data to answer important economic questions about AI.
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Research Scope and Priority Questions
The programme welcomes proposals that begin with a clear economic question about AI. Applicants should explain how approved, privacy-preserving use of OpenAI data or context could help answer that question.
Priority areas include:
• Labor market effects
• Employer behavior and job design
• Household welfare
• AI and education
• Unequal access and benefit
• Small businesses and independent work
• Public-sector and civic contexts
• Knowledge production and innovation
• Market structure
• Measuring economic value
Proposals may focus on one question or combine related questions. The official request for proposals encourages research designs that go beyond descriptive correlations when causal claims are involved.
Project Timelines
The Exchange supports a portfolio of projects across different research timeframes.
• Short-term projects: 2–6 months
• Medium-term projects: 6–12 months
Applicants should state which timeline their proposal targets. They should also explain why the chosen timeline fits the research question.
Funding and Research Support
Each selected project receives financial and research support.
✓ One-time research grant for the principal investigator or investigators: $25,000
✓ Monthly RA stipend or contractor compensation: $7,500
✓ Access to approved, privacy-safe product and usage data under NDA
✓ Internal support for project scoping, onboarding, data approvals, review, and dissemination
The official page states that approved data access is subject to data governance, privacy, legal, and security requirements. It also states that hands-on analysis for external collaborations must be performed by the visiting researcher or their research assistant.
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Who Should Submit a Proposal?
The Exchange welcomes proposals from researchers with strong empirical skills and relevant expertise.
Relevant areas may include:
• Applied causal inference
• Measurement
• Labor economics
• Productivity
• Firms
• Education
• Entrepreneurship
• Public finance
• Regional economics
• Development
• Inequality
• Related fields
The official request for proposals says OpenAI will prioritize researchers with a prior publication track record in the research areas they are proposing. It will also prioritize researchers who have access to unique data that can support ambitious collaborations.
Expectations for Selected Projects
Funded projects must include clear intermediate milestones, not only a final paper.
Selected researchers are expected to:
• Define milestones tied to the project timeline
• Complete onboarding, contracting, and approved data-access steps before analysis begins
• Share intermediate findings with the OpenAI Economic Research team
• Participate in periodic research read-outs or consortium discussions
• Produce at least one written output
• Coordinate external communication or publication through the agreed OpenAI review path
Possible written outputs include a memo, working paper, draft publication, public brief, benchmark, or dataset documentation.
Research Independence and Use of Findings
Researchers retain independence in study design and analysis. External publication or public use of findings must be coordinated with OpenAI to support accuracy, privacy protection, legal compliance, and appropriate context.
The official page also states that OpenAI will not make external claims without credible measurement.
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How Proposals Will Be Evaluated
Proposals will be reviewed according to the priorities and operating model of the Exchange.
Evaluation criteria include:
• Relevance to OpenAI Economic Research priority questions
• Methodological rigor and credibility
• Feasibility given scope, data, privacy, legal, and timeline constraints
• Clear milestones and reporting plans
• Fit with the Exchange operating model
• Potential to contribute credible external evidence on AI’s economic impacts
• Potential to use approved OpenAI data in innovative, privacy-preserving ways
The official request for proposals states that OpenAI will not share conversation data under any circumstances.
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Required Proposal Information
Proposals must be submitted through the official form. Applicants must provide additional information as a single Google Doc link.
The proposal should not exceed three pages, excluding references and appendices.
Each proposal should include:
• Research question and motivation
• Fit with one or more Exchange priority questions
• Proposed methodology and empirical strategy
• Data needs and privacy-preserving design
• Target timeline and key milestones
• Research team and proposed RA or visiting researcher profile
• Expected contributions to evidence, internal learning, and approved public communication
• Scope definition, including in-scope and out-of-scope analyses, outputs, geographies, and stakeholders
• Success criteria, failure conditions, dependencies, constraints, and resource commitments
Application Form Details
The official application form asks for key applicant and project information.
Applicants should be ready to provide:
• First name and last name of the primary researcher or project lead
• Email address for application follow-up
• Institution or affiliation
• Google Doc link to the research proposal
• Most relevant research question area
• Data needs
• Designated researcher or RA who would support the project
• Research team details
• Timeline and milestones
• External distribution plans
The external distribution section may cover anticipated publications, working papers, conference outputs, policy briefs, datasets, benchmarks, or public communication.
Key Dates
• RFP issued: Jun 8, 2026
• Proposal due: July 5, 2026
• Proposal decisions released: July 31, 2026
Apply Here
Submit your application through the official application link below.
