ChatGPT is Going to Start Showing You Ads

[Porco]

There’s very little brewin’ that running ads can’t ruin.

 

[attila]

This will detract people from using it, and I'm all for it!

 

[wanha]

Oh no… the ******fication begins… I didn’t see it coming, tbf. Not on ChatGPT.

the way they're leaking money, it's all hands on deck to monetize, monetize, monetize at OpenAI

 

[jelly_s]

I hope the answer isn't skewed by ads like in Google's search results.

 

[maflynn]

I can't say that I'm surprised, I use chatgpt fairly often, I'll have to re-evaluate my usage depending on how they implement the ads.

 

[thelion7]

OpenAI appears to be gearing up to introduce ads in ChatGPT, presumably for users who don't pay to access the chatbot.

Engineer Tibor Blaho recently found references to upcoming ad functionality in the ChatGPT Android app. Code strings mention search ads, a search ad carousel, and an ad API. Though ad mentions were found in the Android app, it's likely a change that's coming to ChatGPT on all platforms, including iOS, Mac, and the desktop.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1994714152636690834

Given the "search" wording, it's possible ads will be limited to web searches and shopping research requests.

Access to ChatGPT starts at $20 per month for the Plus plan, with a ChatGPT Pro plan available for $200 per month with higher access limits. There are also business and education plans, along with the current free plan. In other countries, OpenAI offers a cheaper "Go" plan that could also expand to the United States when ads roll out.

There have been rumors that OpenAI plans to gradually raise the price of ChatGPT access, and a plan restructuring with an ad-supported tier seems like the ideal time to make pricing changes.

As noted by Search Engine Land, OpenAI executives have been changing their messaging around ads over the course of the last 12 months. In late 2024, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said ads were a "last resort," but in early 2025, leaked internal forecasts included $1 billion in "free user monetization" revenue in 2026. Earlier this year, Altman said that he loved Instagram ads and felt they were valuable. He said he thought OpenAI could find "some cool product ad" that's a "net win to the user."

Article Link: ChatGPT is Going to Start Showing You Ads

It's really sad but we live in a world where if a service or platform can feed you Ads it will.

As soon as Chat GPT starts ads, I'll move to Gemini (until they do the same thing)

Hopefully by then Apple Intelligence will be ready thanks to their deal with Google to use Gemini Models of which I don't think Apple would do Ads with Siri 2.0.

Apple have already burned through most of their customer goodwill with Apple Intelligence.

They simply need to deliver it and move on.

Adding a chargeable or free Ad supported tier would destroy any of their potential user base and by being the only AI assistant where it will never serve you ads might be Apple's last chance to have a decent user base given their mess ups with Apple Intelligence has pushed most Apple Users (who want AI features) to third parties.

And the rest of their users either don't know what Apple Intelligence is and or just don't care.

 

[thelion7]

AI doesn’t make money, it burns through money. advertising does make money. So of course the future is ads.

The problem is even when a product does make money and a profit, adding adds allows them to make more money and profit.

Basically if the government could be paid by companies to push ads directly into our dreams and minds they would do it.

This makes me think of that Futurama Episode where Fry had a dream which was an Ad, it was made years ago but the writers were on the ball with where we'd end up.

 

[Leachb31]

Oh, boy. People who "date" their AIs are going to love this, I bet.

"I had a horrible day today, babe."
"Sorry to hear that, honey — I'd recommend reaching out to today's sponsor: BetterHelp."

More like, "Reach out to today's sponsor: Lube City"

 

[amartinez1660]

The casual user should not be averse to seeing an ad since they are getting considerable value. The service MUST be paid for. They aren't a charity. If nothing else, they have to pay for their electric bill. The electricity required to answer a moderately complex question (say, one that takes 60 seconds to answer) can cost up to 0.2 cents. That 0.2 cents corresponds to a $2 CPM ad price. Low-cost un-targeted inventory goes as low as $1 CPM.

A point people forget, without ads and commerce, everything of value on the internet would be locked behind paywalls. You can't be a happy non-paying MacRumors user and complain about ads on other sites without being a flaming hypocrite. Ask yourself whether the value you get here is worth seeing a few ads. My guess is you'll probably say it is. Why would you be here otherwise?

BTW, I pay $20/month for ChatGPT. I get my money's worth because I use it to research subjects I'm interested in. It often has to "think" for significant amounts of time, especially when I ask it to browse the web for specific information and synthesize it. I know I'm not the typical casual user. If I were, ads would not bother.

You got some downvotes here, but know what? I agree, at least on the user side of this table. There’s no free lunch.

On the Ads side, I do wonder if the ads will be better… YouTube for example is appalling at how intrusive, badly timed and out of touch it is with them. It doesn’t make me want to buy anything, it makes me hate the product or the company or the grifter selling whatever they are selling, with all my guts.

Plus, aren’t they supposed to have had all the data, behaviors and patterns of everyone everywhere? If I have recently bought a car, the darn thing doesn’t realize that I don’t need one but still pushes for (read in graspy thick male ad voice): “the new big pick up truck, with the lug nut. This is the new pick up truuuuuck”.

If ChatGPT gets ads I do wonder how the experience will be.