An AI wrapper is a legitimate way to start a company. After OpenAI’s DevDay 2026, the real question is what stays yours when a lab ships the same feature, and who already pays for it.

An AI wrapper is a product built on top of another company’s foundation model. The lab supplies the intelligence; the wrapper supplies the interface, the prompts, the workflow and the customer relationship. Most AI startups begin this way, and it is a sound way to begin. What decides the company’s future is what grows harder to replace once anyone can make the same model call.