ChatGPT starts testing ads that open a chat with a brand's own AI agent
ChatGPT ads can now lead to a conversation with a company's own AI agent, but only in a small US test for now. OpenAI announced Sponsored Agents on September 16, a format that lets people "start a conversation with a business-sponsored agent after clicking an ad in ChatGPT".
OpenAI's August 31 post put ChatGPT Ads at a $1 billion annualised revenue run rate. Image: OpenAI
The test runs "with select advertisers in the United States", and OpenAI names none of them. Its help article on the format calls it "a limited alpha test" and says OpenAI is not taking early access requests.
The agent chat sits apart from ChatGPT's answers
OpenAI's example is a shopper wondering whether an advertised dining table fits their room. After clicking the ad, the user can open a clearly labelled conversation with the business's agent, ask follow-up questions and follow a link to the business's website.
OpenAI says that conversation "is distinct from ChatGPT's independent answers and separate from the original conversation" the user started. Its ads FAQ adds that if you message an advertiser through an ad, the advertiser sees only the messages you send to it directly.
Plus and Pro subscribers will not see one. According to the same FAQ, ads may appear on the Free and Go plans, while Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu accounts get none, and accounts identified as belonging to under-18s are excluded.
Free users can also switch to an ad-free mode that comes with lower message limits and no access to some tools, such as image generation and deep research.
Advertisers get AI tools and Shopify and HubSpot links
The rest of the announcement is aimed at marketers. Advertisers can create, update and analyse campaigns with plain-language prompts through an Ads Manager plugin in ChatGPT, and Ads Manager now suggests copy and imagery based on a landing page and campaign goal.
One opt-in feature reaches users directly. "AI-powered text customization" adapts an advertiser's existing headlines and descriptions to the context of a conversation and translates ad copy into the user's preferred language.
HubSpot is OpenAI's first CRM partner and Shopify its first e-commerce partner. US Shopify merchants got a ChatGPT Ads app on September 16, and OpenAI says it reaches other markets where ChatGPT Ads are available from September 23.
OpenAI says ChatGPT Ads hit a $1 billion run rate in August
The push has money behind it. On August 31, OpenAI said ChatGPT Ads had reached $1 billion in annualised revenue run rate less than 200 days after launch, with ads available in over 40 countries and tens of thousands of advertisers using the platform.
Ads began as a US test on February 9, according to the FAQ. The August post calls advertising one pillar of OpenAI's business alongside subscriptions, enterprise offerings and APIs, where cheaper Chinese models have been competing for OpenAI's customers. It also promised "new ways for businesses to interact with consumers in more native ways in ChatGPT", and Sponsored Agents look like the first of them.
For now, the salesperson behind the ad is a limited alpha that only some Free and Go users in the US will meet.
