OpenAI Opens ChatGPT Ad Platform to All US Businesses
OpenAI opened its ChatGPT advertising platform to all U.S. businesses Tuesday through a new self-serve buying system, eliminating a previous $50,000 minimum budget requirement, The Decoder reported.
The move, reported by The Decoder and Quartz, allows small and midsize businesses to purchase ads within ChatGPT without the spending threshold that had previously limited the platform to large advertisers. The company is targeting $2.5 billion in advertising revenue this year, according to The Decoder.
The expansion opens the platform to businesses of all sizes as OpenAI seeks to position ChatGPT alongside established digital advertising channels dominated by Google, Meta and Amazon.
The self-serve model mirrors the approach that powered the growth of digital advertising giants. Google and Meta both built multibillion-dollar businesses by making it easy for small businesses to buy ads without working through sales teams or meeting high spending minimums.
For OpenAI, the advertising push comes as the company seeks to diversify revenue beyond its ChatGPT Plus, Team and Enterprise subscription tiers. The $2.5 billion target would represent a new income stream for a company that has faced scrutiny over its path to profitability.
The initial rollout is limited to U.S. advertisers, according to Quartz.
AI chatbots have traditionally been ad-free, and the introduction of sponsored content into conversational interfaces is largely uncharted territory for the digital advertising industry.
OpenAI’s advertising push comes amid broader industry momentum around AI-powered ad products. Google has integrated generative AI into its advertising tools, while Meta has deployed AI across its ad targeting and creative systems.
The elimination of the $50,000 floor opens the platform to local businesses, startups and niche advertisers. OpenAI has said ChatGPT exceeds hundreds of millions of weekly active users.
