OpenAI Boosts Codex’s Capabilities with Ona Acquisition
OpenAI recently announced its strategic acquisition of Ona (previously known as Gitpod GmbH), a German cloud startup. This move aims to significantly enhance the capabilities of its AI coding assistant, Codex. The deal, unveiled on June 11, 2026, will empower Codex to execute complex, multi-step coding tasks for extended periods—even when the developer has closed their laptop.
Ona’s advanced technology offers secure, pre-configured cloud environments. These spaces allow AI agents to independently access tools, systems, and context to complete sustained work. OpenAI believes that this acquisition will enable Codex to manage longer-running tasks. These tasks include refactoring large codebases, running extended test suites, and patching entire classes of vulnerabilities—all without human supervision or an active session.
The timing of this acquisition is noteworthy. Codex now boasts over 5 million weekly active users, a significant increase from 3 million in April. This growth represents a rate of over 400% since the beginning of 2026. Despite fierce competition from Anthropic’s Claude Code—which recently launched Claude Fable 5 with impressive benchmark results—OpenAI remains confident. Thibault Sottiaux, OpenAI’s Core Products Lead, stated, “Ona will help us make Codex easier to deploy securely across production workflows.” The financial details of the deal remain undisclosed.
Source: CNBC — OpenAI to Acquire Ona to Support Codex