OpenAI confirmed that it will start showing ads on ChatGPT. It’s a big change for how the company plans to make money from its AI platform, and they will start testing ads in the US market first, and then they will roll them out to more countries later.
This news dropped not long after reports surfaced that CEO Sam Altman told teams to double down on ChatGPT and hit pause on side projects.
OpenAI says Ads are coming to ChatGPT – only for free and Go users.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), OpenAI explained that ads will show up soon for people using the Free and Go versions of ChatGPT. If you are paying for Plus, Pro, Enterprise, or Business, you will not see ads—those tiers stay ad-free.
Advertisers will not shape AI responses
OpenAIspeltd out four main rules for how they will handle ads. They made it clear that the advertisers do not get to influence what ChatGPT says.
Ads will not get mixed up with the AI’s answers, and they are clearly marked so you know what is what.
They also promised your chats will not get shared with advertisers. This is supposed to help with privacy worries.
Users can control their data and Ad targeting
OpenAI said it might use some non-chat data to make ads more relevant, but users stay in charge. You can turn off ad personalisation or wipe the data used for ads anytime in your settings.
And for anyone worried about doomscrolling, OpenAI says it will not tweak ChatGPT to keep you glued to the screen just to rack up more ad views.
Small businesses might get new tools
OpenAI wants its ads to actually be helpful, not just noisy banners. They are looking at ways for small businesses to build AI-powered experiences in ChatGPT, triggered when users interact with ads.
Ad formats, where they appear, and who sees them could all change as testing goes on. There’s also talk of a new subscription tier with zero ads somewhere down the line.
