OpenAI's Controversial Plan: Turning ChatGPT Conversations into Billion-Dollar Ad Revenue

Your ChatGPT Chats Could Soon Fuel Personalized Ads Worth Billions - Phandroid

If you thought Google's personalized ads felt invasive, OpenAI's plans for ChatGPT might make you uncomfortable. A report from The Information suggests that OpenAI is actively building an advertising infrastructure that could start displaying targeted ads in ChatGPT by 2026, with projections of $1 billion in ad revenue that year and potentially $25 billion by 2029. The company is hiring ad-tech specialists and engineers to develop campaign management tools that leverage the chatbot's memory feature and conversation history to serve hyper-personalized sponsorships to over 700 million weekly users. What makes ChatGPT personalized ads particularly concerning is how people actually use the platform. Unlike social media browsing or search queries, ChatGPT conversations often involve deeply personal matters. Users discuss health concerns, relationship problems, financial struggles, career anxieties, and sensitive work projects. The idea that OpenAI could monetize these intimate exchanges for advertiser profit feels distinctly unscrupulous. According to job listings and executive hires, including former Meta specialists, ads could appear as contextual product recommendations, sponsored links within responses, or branded chat sessions. The platform's memory system already tracks your preferences and conversation history across sessions, providing advertisers with incredibly specific intent signals that go far beyond traditional browsing behavior. To be fair, AI companies face legitimate financial pressures. Operating costs for serving hundreds of millions of users are astronomical, and $20 monthly subscriptions alone won't sustain that scale. OpenAI needs alternative revenue streams, and advertising represents an obvious solution that keeps free access available. But leveraging your most private conversations for ad targeting raises serious ethical questions. CEO Sam Altman previously called advertising a "last resort," yet the company's hiring push and infrastructure development tell a different story. OpenAI promises "thoughtful" ad placement, though specifics about privacy protections and opt-out options remain unclear. The shift mirrors how tech giants monetize free services, but ChatGPT's conversational intimacy makes this feel different. When your AI confidant becomes an advertising engine, the line between helpful tool and exploitation gets uncomfortably blurry.

OpenAI Could Show Ads on ChatGPT Based on What It Knows About You

Former Meta employees reportedly make up 20 percent of OpenAI workforce OpenAI's plans to bring ads to ChatGPT are reportedly taking hold within the company. As per the report, several employees in leadership positions view ads on the artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot platform as an opportunity, and have even pushed to show users targeted ads based on the chatbot's memory and user data. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has also shifted from his stance of ads being the last resort, with his recent comments hinting at a favourable outlook. Notably, the pro-ad group within the company is said to be composed of former Meta employees. OpenAI Could Reportedly Show Targeted Ads on ChatGPT According to The Information, the San Francisco-based AI giant is considering showing targeted ads to users. Citing an unnamed employee familiar with the discussions, the publication claimed that ads on ChatGPT could be based on the chatbot's memory feature, which allows it to remember certain details about the user. Based on earlier reports, the AI firm has been considering bringing ads to the platform for quite some time. But now, it appears the conversations have reached an advanced stage, with the company considering using user data for this. The AI giant has reportedly also asked its focus groups about ads, and the findings reveal that some users believe ChatGPT already shows ads. This information is said to be used to convince the decision makers to add advertisements. Interestingly, the OpenAI employees reportedly pushing for ads are all former Meta workers, and they view ads as an opportunity. Around 630 former Meta employees are reportedly part of OpenAI at present, representing nearly 20 percent of its total workforce. One of the most prominent names from this group is Fidji Simo, the CEO of Applications, who is also looking to hire a Chief of Monetisation for the company. The report also highlights that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's stance on advertising has also changed over the last few months. In March 2024, Altman called ads a "momentary industry" during an interview with Lex Fridman. In December 2024, he reiterated his stance, calling ads a "last resort for us," during a fireside chat at Harvard University. However, in October, the OpenAI CEO said in a podcast with Andreessen Horowitz that he finds ads "somewhat distasteful but not a nonstarter."