San Francisco, CA – February 9, 2026 – OpenAI has officially begun testing advertisements within its ChatGPT conversational AI platform, marking a significant shift in the company's monetization strategy. The move aims to support broader access to ChatGPT's powerful features while maintaining user trust.
The initial rollout of advertisements is limited to logged-in adult users in the United States who are utilizing the free and "Go" subscription tiers. Users with premium subscriptions, including Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, and Education tiers, will not be exposed to advertisements. The "Go" plan costs $8 monthly.
According to OpenAI, the advertisements will be clearly labeled as "sponsored" and will appear at the bottom of ChatGPT responses, separate from the AI-generated content. The company emphasizes that these advertisements will not influence the chatbot's responses.
"Our goal is for ads to support broader access to more powerful ChatGPT features while maintaining the trust people place in ChatGPT for important and personal tasks," OpenAI stated.
The selection of advertisements will be tailored to users' prompt histories, past chats, and interactions with ads. For example, a user seeking recipe suggestions might see an advertisement for a grocery delivery service. OpenAI assures that advertisers will not have access to users' chat histories or personal details. Furthermore, ads will not appear alongside sensitive topics such as health, mental health, or politics. Users under 18 will also not see ads.
ChatGPT users on the free tier will have the option to opt out of personalized advertisements, but doing so may limit their usage of the platform. Alternatively, users can avoid advertisements altogether by upgrading to a paid subscription plan.
This move to incorporate advertising reflects OpenAI's need to diversify its revenue streams amid increasing operational costs. While subscription fees and API services for businesses have contributed to revenue, a large segment of users still relies on the free tier. OpenAI expects that ads will account for less than half of its revenue long term.
The introduction of advertisements comes shortly after Anthropic, a competitor in the AI chatbot space, released Super Bowl ads poking fun at the idea of advertising in AI chatbots, emphasizing that their chatbot, Claude, would remain ad-free.
Industry analysts note that OpenAI's entry into AI chatbot advertising could open a new channel for platform monetization. The targeting mechanism, which relies on conversation context rather than search keywords, offers a unique approach to reaching potential customers.
OpenAI's decision to explore advertising highlights the ongoing evolution of AI monetization strategies. As AI chatbots become increasingly integrated into daily life, the challenge lies in finding a balance between generating revenue and preserving user experience and trust. OpenAI is inviting advertisers to sign up to promote their businesses as the ad program is piloted.
