OpenAI is quietly investigating its advertising opportunities as it nears 2026, insiders disclose, with intentions to experiment with sponsored content in ChatGPT. This conjecture stems from statements made by OpenAI’s applications CEO, Fidji Simo, who elaborated on the organization’s R&D goals in a Substack article. Sources suggest that Simo also mentioned plans to trial ads on internal, employee-exclusive chat models in the coming year, as reported by journalist Alex Heath. Simo is laying the groundwork for a robust commercial foundation for ChatGPT’s advertising future, including partnerships with Walmart, Instacart, Target, and Shopify.
OpenAI has been cautious regarding intentions to incorporate public-facing advertisements into chatbot replies or chat interfaces, even as rivals like Google advance and leaked mentions of ad features in the ChatGPT app surface. In December, user discontent over interactions seen as unmarked advertisements for products like Peloton prompted OpenAI to clarify that while the chatbot may recommend related items, a financial advertising model was not implemented.
That same month, CEO Sam Altman informed staff that app advertising strategies were on hold as the company entered a “code red” situation and reassessed priorities for the year ahead, resulting in the postponement of a new personalized assistant model called Pulse.
Nevertheless, the organization has not forsaken its advertising ambitions, which could provide a stable funding avenue and a lucrative application of tailored user data. As reported by The Information, employees have recently evaluated different ad layout prototypes and discussed disclosures for sponsored replies within ChatGPT discussions, aiming to develop “a new kind of digital ads” that would not redirect users to competitors.
“As ChatGPT becomes increasingly capable and widely adopted, we’re exploring methods to continue delivering more intelligence to everyone,” an OpenAI representative articulated. “Users maintain a trusted relationship with ChatGPT, and any strategy would aim to uphold that trust.”