The AI marketing landscape is evolving and evolving quickly. In the first few months of this year alone, we’ve seen some major developments. ChatGPT, the place where people actively go for answers, guidance, and recommendations, is getting monetized, allowing brands to appear during moments when people are already highly engaged. As outlined below, things are happening fast, and the brands who win will be the ones who show up genuinely ready to help.
May 2026:
According to AdWeek, OpenAI’s privacy policy now openly acknowledges receiving data from advertisers and their partners to measure ad effectiveness on its platform, including data on what users have purchased.
The company has also recently rolled out a beta self-serve Ads Manager that allows advertisers to sign up and purchase ads directly to appear in ChatGPT. Once they’ve registered as advertisers, businesses can add payment information, set budgets, bids and pacing, upload ads, launch and manage campaigns, and view performance in the portal.
Ad buying continues to evolve. In the first phase of the pilot, advertisers could buy ChatGPT ads on a Cost-per-thousand views (CPM) basis. Cost-per-click (CPC) bidding and expanded measurement tools have now been introduced, giving businesses more flexible ways to buy, manage, and understand campaign performance without sharing conversations or personal details with advertisers.
The ChatGPT ad pilot will soon be expanding to the United Kingdom, Mexico, Brazil, Japan, and South Korea, allowing the company to make adjustments as the rollout continues.
April 2026:
OpenAI plans to extend its ad pilot program beyond April, and began asking its more than 600 advertisers in the program for Insertion Order (IO) commitments. This signals a shift from early testing toward a more structured ad business. The company expects to roll out self-serve capabilities this month, while expanding the pilot to Canada, Australia and New Zealand. While 85% of OpenAI’s free and “Go” users in the U.S. are eligible to see ads, less than 20% are shown them on a daily basis. Sam Huston, SVP of Media at DEPT, said the ad-serving process still lacks full transparency and appears to rely on a mix of query intent and advertiser inputs. Early tests point to OpenAI adopting a premium approach, with CPMs hovering around $60.
The question for marketers isn’t whether or not AI will impact their marketing strategy, it’s how their plans will evolve with it. A test-and-learn mindset will be key. We know that people come to ChatGPT with intent. They’re not passively browsing, they’re looking for answers. Brands that show up selling instead of helping will miss the mark, and the genuine opportunity to engage with consumers in an authentic way. ChatGPT ad campaigns that are simple, clear and solution-focused will likely be the ones that gain traction and earn trust.
Previous updates provided below.
March 2026:
ChatGPT began testing an Ads Manager with a small group of partners. According to AdWeek, the Ads Manager dashboard will let marketers run, monitor, and optimize campaigns in real time. An OpenAI spokesperson told the pub that the partner testers will receive weekly Comma Separated Values (CSV) reports (i.e. spreadsheets with performance data like clicks or impressions).
The question for marketers isn’t whether or not AI will impact their marketing strategy; it’s how their plans will evolve with it. A test-and-learn mindset will be key. We know that people come to ChatGPT with intent. They’re not passively browsing; they’re looking for answers. Brands that show up selling instead of helping will miss the mark, and the genuine opportunity to engage with consumers in an authentic way. ChatGPT ad campaigns that are simple, clear, and solution-focused will likely be the ones that gain traction and earn trust.
February 2026:
OpenAI’s top rival, Anthropic, spent millions during the Super Bowl to let people know that, unlike ChatGPT, its Claude chatbot will remain ad-free. “Our users won’t see 'sponsored' links adjacent to their conversations with Claude; nor will Claude’s responses be influenced by advertisers or include third-party product placements our users did not ask for," the company writes in a blog post.
January 2026:
OpenAI announces plans to begin testing ads within ChatGPT. According to the company, the ChatGPT ads will appear as clearly labeled sponsored placements at the bottom of the chatbot’s answers, separate from the assistant’s generated response. OpenAI said it will test ads within its free and “Go” subscription tiers in the U.S., but its Plus, Pro, and Enterprise subscriptions won’t include them. Additionally, users under age 18 won’t see any ads, nor will they appear near certain topics like politics, health, and mental health.
Tune in as we continue to post monthly updates and shed light on this interesting new channel, one that signals an exciting, meaningful shift in how brands and audiences connect.