OpenAI is preparing to place advertisements at the top of its AI chatbot, ChatGPT. Starting with a U.S. trial, the ads will appear for users of both the free version of ChatGPT and a new subscription tier called ChatGPT Go.
ChatGPT Go, priced at $8 per month, is being rolled out globally, giving users expanded access to messaging, image creation, file uploads, and memory features. The ad trial, according to OpenAI, is designed to allow “more people [to] benefit from our tools with fewer usage limits or without having to pay.”
The ads will be displayed as banners after a user submits a prompt. For example, asking ChatGPT about travel destinations in Mexico could trigger a relevant holiday advertisement. Importantly, OpenAI has emphasized that these ads will not influence ChatGPT’s responses, nor will advertisers gain access to private conversations.
Users can also control how their data is used for ad personalization, or opt out entirely through paid tiers, which will remain ad-free.
In a detailed statement, OpenAI outlined principles guiding the rollout: ads must align with the company’s mission, preserve answer independence, protect conversation privacy, give users choice and control, and prioritize long-term user trust over revenue.
The introduction of ads comes amid growing scrutiny of the AI sector’s financial sustainability. OpenAI reportedly operated at a loss of around $8 billion in the first half of 2025, despite ChatGPT having 800 million users worldwide. Only 5% of those users were paid subscribers, highlighting the challenge of relying solely on subscriptions for revenue.
Altman has long resisted advertising. In 2024, he described ads as “a last resort” for the company. Yet the move now seems inevitable, as OpenAI faces mounting competition from Alphabet’s Gemini, Anthropic, and other AI firms. Investment pressures are intense, with the company’s valuation at $500 billion in late 2025 and large-scale funding needs projected over the next decade.
Despite the financial urgency, Altman insists that ChatGPT’s independence remains intact. “Ads plus AI is uniquely unsettling,” he acknowledged, “but we will not accept money to influence the answer ChatGPT gives you.”
OpenAI is not alone in exploring ad-supported AI models. The internet economy has relied on advertising for more than two decades, and other AI companies, including Perplexity, have briefly experimented with similar strategies. Google, however, has denied pursuing ads for its Gemini AI tool in 2026.
Analysts note that the AI sector’s valuation may be inflated, warning of a potential “bubble” that could burst. By diversifying revenue through advertising while maintaining subscription tiers, OpenAI aims to secure a more sustainable path forward.
The ads rollout is set to begin in the coming weeks for adult users in the U.S., and OpenAI plans to collect feedback to refine the experience. Ads will be labeled clearly, separate from AI responses, and excluded from sensitive topics like health, mental health, or politics.
