OpenAI to Display Advertisements Alongside ChatGPT-Generated Images

OpenAI is set to display visual advertisements alongside images generated by ChatGPT. According to a report by TechCrunch on Monday (5/10), trials for displaying visual ads alongside ChatGPT’s image outputs will commence in the United as of late October 2026.

In the initial phase, advertisements will feature products and services from a group of advertisers participating in the testing programme. OpenAI has stated that advertisements will be clearly labelled and will not affect the answers provided by ChatGPT to users.

In addition to adding image-based ads to its advertising suite, OpenAI is expanding its advertising measurement tools and partnerships while developing new methods to determine brand suitability. Earlier this year, OpenAI began introducing advertisements to support its free services and low-cost subscription packages.

With these new visual ads, the company intends to attract online advertisers looking to reach potential customers. Once launched globally, the displayed visual advertisements will allow advertisers to reach ChatGPT’s 1.2 billion weekly users.

Furthermore, advanced measurement partners covering the entire marketing funnel, such as Fospha, Measured, and INCRMNTAL, have been involved. OpenAI has also established partnerships with Haus, Measured, and WorkMagic to assist advertisers in conducting experiments related to geo-location-based advertising.

The company is currently developing brand suitability evaluation trials with the assistance of DoubleVerify (DV) and Integral Ad Science (IAS) to help advertisers understand the ad placement environment within ChatGPT.

These steps demonstrate OpenAI’s efforts to establish ChatGPT as a viable business model supported by advertising. However, the addition of visual ads could potentially disrupt the user experience and encourage users to switch to paid or higher-tier subscription services to avoid advertisements.