OpenAI has commenced testing advertisements within ChatGPT, representing a notable change for the platform, which has primarily functioned without conventional advertising since its introduction in 2022.
A recent blog post from OpenAI confirmed the initiation of ad testing for logged-in users on its Free and Go plans within the U.S. Paid subscriptions, including Pro, Business, Enterprise, and Education, will remain free of advertisements. OpenAI stated that this initiative aims to support wider access to advanced AI capabilities without necessitating a subscription fee from all users.
OpenAI’s blog post emphasized that the primary goal of this test is learning. The company is closely monitoring user feedback to ensure that advertisements are perceived as useful and integrate seamlessly into the ChatGPT experience before any broader expansion.
Advertisements are displayed separately from ChatGPT’s responses and are distinctly marked as sponsored content. OpenAI assures users that ads do not affect the chatbot’s answers and that user conversations are not shared with advertisers. Ad selection is based on general conversation topics and user engagement with ads, with safeguards implemented to prevent sponsored content from appearing alongside sensitive subjects like health, mental health, or politics.
Users of ChatGPT’s free service have the option to opt out of these advertisements, though with a specific condition.
According to OpenAI, users who prefer not to encounter ads can upgrade to Plus or Pro plans, or alternatively, opt out of ads in the Free tier in exchange for a reduced number of daily free messages.
For users who agree to see ads, there is also an option to disable ad personalization, which restricts how sponsored content is chosen. Additional features allow users to prevent ChatGPT from using previous AI conversations to customize ads and to delete “all ads history and data” collected by the company.
During testing, attempts to display ads within ChatGPT during normal use did not trigger any sponsored content, consistent with OpenAI’s characterization of the rollout as a limited test rather than a complete launch.
This ad rollout comes after several months of user confusion and dissatisfaction, sparked by widely shared screenshots that seemed to depict promotional content integrated into ChatGPT responses. OpenAI had previously clarified these instances as ill-timed “suggestions,” but this clarification did not fully alleviate user concerns. Reports from earlier this year indicated that OpenAI had been internally exploring various ad formats, suggesting that monetization would eventually be crucial to cover the platform’s substantial infrastructure expenses.
With ChatGPT now experimenting with ads and providing opt-out mechanisms, OpenAI seems to be relying on transparency and user choice to ease the transition to a more conventional, ad-supported internet framework. This development has, however, drawn attention from competitors. Anthropic, a significant rival to OpenAI, utilized its Super Bowl LX advertising slots to openly satirize the concept of integrating advertisements within AI chatbots.
Anthropic’s advertisements promoted its chatbot, Claude, by presenting scenarios where seemingly helpful AI conversations abruptly shifted into uncomfortable sales pitches, concluding with the slogan, “Ads are coming to AI. But not to Claude.”
