OpenAI introduces advertisements in ChatGPT and launches a cheaper subscription to generate extra income.
OpenAI will show advertisements in the coming weeks to American users with a free ChatGPT account. Subscribers to the new ChatGPT Go plan will also see advertisements. That subscription was launched today in the US and costs 8 dollars per month, less than half of the current Plus formula. There is a good chance that Europe will follow soon.
Contextual product recommendations
The first form of advertising consists of a carousel with products that match the user’s query. For example, someone asking for recipes may see promotions from a grocery delivery service. OpenAI says it will add additional ad formats later and allow users to ask questions about promoted products. Irrelevant ads can be clicked away with feedback.
According to the announcement from OpenAI, conversations are not shared with advertisers. Users also get options to disable ad personalization and clear their chat history.
New revenue stream for growth
ChatGPT Go has ten times higher message limits than the free version, and extra possibilities for file uploads and image generation, but lacks functions such as Sora and Codex. With advertisements, OpenAI wants to finance its rapid growth. CEO Sam Altman indicated that revenue would exceed 20 billion dollars by the end of 2025, while the company is still running billions in losses. The advertising plans may also ensure that OpenAI becomes a listed company in 2026 or 2027.
read also