OpenAI has announced the global rollout of a new low-cost subscription for ChatGPT, alongside plans to introduce advertising to parts of the service later this year.
The company set out the principles that will govern how advertising is introduced to ChatGPT – though it stressed that ads are not yet live on the platform.
Advertising is expected to be tested in the coming weeks in the United States on the free and Go tiers only. OpenAI said its higher-priced Pro, Business and Enterprise subscriptions will remain completely ad-free.
The company emphasised that advertising will not influence ChatGPT’s responses. Ads will be clearly labelled, kept separate from answers, and users’ conversations will not be shared with advertisers.
OpenAI also said it will not show ads to users under the age of 18, nor alongside sensitive topics such as health, mental health or politics.
According to the company, users will have control over ad personalisation and will be able to turn it off or dismiss individual adverts.
See an example below:
Photo: OpenAI
OpenAI says the introduction of advertising is intended to support broader access to AI tools without increasing costs, while maintaining trust in the platform. It added that it does not optimise ChatGPT for time spent or engagement, prioritising user experience over advertising revenue.
Testing of the first ad formats is expected to begin shortly, with OpenAI saying it will refine its approach based on user feedback.
In a separate announcement, from today, ChatGPT Go, the company’s cheaper paid tier, will be available wherever ChatGPT operates, offering access to features such as extended messaging, image generation, file uploads, and memory for £8 a month in the UK.
The move is part of OpenAI’s broader effort to expand access to its artificial intelligence tools, which are increasingly being used for learning, work and everyday problem-solving.
The announcements come as competition intensifies in the AI sector, with companies under growing pressure to balance rapid expansion, public trust and sustainable business models.
In a statement, OpenAI said: “AI is reaching a point where everyone can have a personal super-assistant that helps them learn and do almost anything. Who gets access to that level of intelligence will shape whether AI expands opportunity or reinforces the same divides. “We’ve been working to make powerful AI accessible to everyone through our free product and low-cost subscription tier, ChatGPT Go, which has launched in 171 countries since August.
“We keep your conversations with ChatGPT private from advertisers, and we never sell your data to advertisers,” OpenAI added. “That means you need to trust that ChatGPT’s responses are driven by what’s objectively useful, never by advertising. You need to know that your data and conversations are protected and never sold to advertisers. And we need to keep a high bar and give you control over your experience, so you see truly relevant, high-quality ads – and can turn off personalisation if you want."
Ad principles
The company outlined a series of 'ad principles', which are reposted below:
Mission alignment: Our mission is to ensure AGI benefits all of humanity; our pursuit of advertising is always in support of that mission and making AI more accessible.
Answer independence: Ads do not influence the answers ChatGPT gives you. Answers are optimised based on what's most helpful to you. Ads are always separate and clearly labelled.
Conversation privacy: We keep your conversations with ChatGPT private from advertisers, and we never sell your data to advertisers.
Choice and control: You control how your data is used. You can turn off personalisation, and you can clear the data used for ads at any time. We’ll always offer a way to not see ads in ChatGPT, including a paid tier that’s ad-free.
Long-term value: We do not optimise for time spent in ChatGPT. We prioritise user trust and user experience over revenue.
"Ads also can be transformative for small businesses and emerging brands trying to compete," the company statement continued. "AI tools level the playing field even further, allowing anyone to create high-quality experiences that help people discover options they might never have found otherwise.
"We’ll learn from feedback and refine how ads show up over time, but our commitment to putting users first and maintaining trust won’t change,” the statement added.
This story was first published on Campaign's sister publication, Performance Marketing World.
