Targeted ads are finally coming to ChatGPT

ChatGPT is following in the footsteps of every popular company product in history, and moving full speed ahead with the introduction of targeted advertisements for users.

On Friday, OpenAI officially began testing ads in ChatGPT for the first time, marking a significant shift for the decade-old AI startup as it seeks new ways to grow revenue.

How it’ll work: According to OpenAI, all ads will appear in separate, clearly labeled boxes directly below the chatbot’s answer. The company says its new ads won’t influence any of ChatGPT’s responses to users.

• Advertisements will first appear for logged-in ChatGPT users on the free tier, as well as the $8/month ChatGPT Go tier.
• OpenAI says users on its Plus, Pro, and Enterprise subscriptions won’t see ads as part of the initial rollout
• A company spokesperson declined to detail exactly what data OpenAI will collect on users to serve relevant ads, but said it won’t sell user data or expose conversations with ChatGPT to advertisers.

The move was a long time coming

Ads on ChatGPT have long felt inevitable. After raising ~$64 billion over the past 10 years, OpenAI has generated only a fraction of that in revenue over the past few years, leaving many investors hungry for greater returns.

However…In launching ads, OpenAI will have to strike a balance between introducing a potentially lucrative new stream of revenue, while also not upsetting users who have grown increasingly impressed with other AI products outside of ChatGPT.

• In December, OpenAI declared a “code red” in response to the surprising success and growth of Google’s Gemini chatbot.
• And Anthropic’s latest Claude update is drawing rave reviews from… well, everyone.

Looking ahead…OpenAI says a growing number of US ChatGPT users in the free and $8/month tiers will start being exposed to its new ad system over the coming weeks.