ChatGPT will soon have ads: Free and Go plan users please note.
Today, OpenAI announced the global expansion of ChatGPT Go – its most affordable subscription plan – to make AI more accessible to a wider audience. Along with this, OpenAI also revealed that advertising will soon be rolled out to ChatGPT Free and Go users in the coming weeks. This represents a significant shift in OpenAI's business strategy, which has relied heavily on a subscription model since ChatGPT launched in 2022.
According to OpenAI, advertising will be tested first in the US and will only be available to adult users on the Free and Go plans. The ChatGPT Plus, Pro, Business, and Enterprise plans will continue to be ad-free.
Aware of concerns surrounding ad-supported services, OpenAI emphasizes several key principles: the company does not sell user data to advertisers, and ChatGPT's response content will not be affected by displayed ads. Additionally, users will have the option to disable ad personalization.
Sharing their perspective on this issue, the OpenAI team stated:
Our long-term goal remains to build products with enough value that millions of individuals and businesses are willing to pay for them. OpenAI's enterprise and subscription segments are already very strong, and we believe in a diversified revenue model where advertising can play a role in making artificial intelligence more accessible to everyone.
In its initial phase, OpenAI will deploy two advertising formats:
First, ads will appear at the end of ChatGPT responses when there are sponsored products or services relevant to the conversation. For example, if you are searching for tourist attractions in a city, ChatGPT might display ads for hotels in that area. These ads will be clearly labeled and completely separate from ChatGPT's response. Users can also see why they are seeing the ad, or hide/decide to ignore it by submitting feedback. OpenAI states that it will not display ads related to sensitive or heavily regulated topics such as healthcare, mental health, or politics.
Secondly, in the future, ChatGPT will support a new form of advertising that allows users to interact directly with advertisers within the ChatGPT interface. Instead of just displaying a link, users can ask advertisers questions before making a purchase or booking a service.
