OpenAI begins testing ads inside ChatGPT

OpenAI will begin testing ads in ChatGPT in the U.S. in the coming weeks. Ads will appear at the bottom of chatbot responses, be clearly labeled, and will only show when there’s a relevant sponsored product or service tied to the conversation.

Who will see ads:

• Logged-in adult users on the free tier
• Users on ChatGPT Go, OpenAI’s $8/month low-cost subscription
• Pro, Business, and Enterprise plans will remain ad-free
• Users under 18 will not see ads

Why we care. Ads inside ChatGPT open a new, high-intent placement where users are actively asking questions and making decisions. Unlike traditional search or social ads, these placements appear directly within relevant conversations, offering context-driven exposure with clear user controls. If scaled, this could become an entirely new performance and discovery channel — especially for brands focused on intent, education, or consideration-stage marketing.

The bigger goal. OpenAI says ads are part of a broader push to make powerful AI accessible to more people. ChatGPT Go, which launched in 171 countries last year, is now available in the U.S., offering expanded features like image generation, file uploads, and memory at a lower price point. Ads are intended to help reduce usage limits for free users and keep costs down.

What won’t change. OpenAI emphasizes that ads will not influence ChatGPT’s answers and that user conversations will never be sold to advertisers. Ads won’t appear near sensitive or regulated topics such as politics, health, or mental health.

OpenAI’s ad principles. The company says its approach is guided by mission alignment, answer independence, conversation privacy, and user control. Users will be able to see why they’re shown an ad, dismiss it, turn off personalization, or clear ad-related data at any time.

Big picture. With more than $1.4 trillion in infrastructure commitments and a reported $20 billion annualized revenue run rate, OpenAI is under pressure to find scalable revenue streams. Advertising — long a cash engine for companies like Google and Meta — could help offset those costs while keeping AI broadly available.

Between the lines. CEO Sam Altman has previously warned that ads could erode trust, but OpenAI is positioning this test as cautious and user-first, stressing it won’t optimize for time spent or revenue at the expense of experience.

What’s next. Ads aren’t live yet, but testing will begin soon. OpenAI says it will refine how ads appear based on user feedback as it experiments with monetizing its flagship product.

View the full article