What’s new. Early references to an advertising system have been found in the latest ChatGPT Android beta (v1.2025.329). Within the APK, TestCatalogue spotted strings such as:
- “advertising function”
- “bazaar content”
- “search ad”
- “search ad carousel”
These listings may suggest an advertising framework that is actively being developed and is likely focused on search, shopping, and product recommendation requests rather than disruptive display ads in every chat.
Zoom out. ChatGPT ads will help OpenAI offset the costs of serving free users as the platform handles more commercial queries. Paid subscriptions would likely remain ad-free. Despite massive funding from investors, OpenAI may be short on cash. There are substantive reports that revenue from subscriptions, partnerships and possibly advertising is not meet the company’s burn rate.
In the meantime. A $200-per-month ChatGPT Pro user reported seeing what appears to be a live ad in ChatGPT: A promo saying “Find a fitness class, connect Peloton” popped up during a discussion about Elon Musk’s interview on Nikhil’s podcast.
- “Wild. Next time at least make sure the ad fits the topic!” Yuchen Jin wrote on X.
What’s next. There is no timeline yet. But the new Android code suggests that ads are shifting from exploration to implementation – a major step toward ChatGPT becoming an ad-supported platform.
Why we care. This may seem like the beginning of the “Google-ification” of ChatGPT, but it’s worth remembering that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said he loves Instagram ads, suggesting this may be the direction ChatGPT ads could take. Either way, this is worth checking out because ChatGPT ads could be a crucial platform for brands to reach nearly a billion users.
Over the past year, OpenAI has shifted from publicly moving away from advertising to quietly preparing for an ad-supported ChatGPT.
Catch up quickly. Over the past year, OpenAI has shifted from publicly moving away from advertising to quietly preparing for an ad-supported ChatGPT.
- End 2024: Executives insisted that advertising was not on the roadmap. CFO Sarah Friar said there were “no active plans” for advertising, and Altman called advertising a “temporary industry” and a “last resort.”
- Early 2025: Internal forecasts were leaked, showing that OpenAI was expecting $1 billion in “free user monetization” revenue by 2026 – a clear sign that advertising was on its way.
- Mid 2025: The hiring began. OpenAI posted roles to build campaign tools, attribution pipelines, and the core of an internal advertising platform.
- End of 2025: Now that OpenAI has committed to spending hundreds of billions on new infrastructure, Altman’s tone changed. He said Instagram ads had changed his mind, suggested there might be a “cool” advertising model that would benefit users, and acknowledged that ChatGPT would likely try ads.
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