ChatGPT might soon have advertisements. OpenAI has said that those using the free version of the AI chatbot will soon be shown advertisements. While they have not rolled it out yet, the company announced on Friday that this would take place in the weeks to come.
Founder Sam Altman said on X, “We are starting to test ads in ChatGPT free and Go (new $8/month option) tiers.”
He added, “Here are our principles. Most importantly, we will not accept money to influence the answer ChatGPT gives you, and we keep your conversations private from advertisers.”
“It is clear to us that a lot of people want to use a lot of AI and don't want to pay, so we are are hopeful a business model like this can work,” Altman further continued, sharing the official update from OpenAI as well.
What to know about ads on ChatGPT
- The ads will appear at the bottom of ChatGPT's answers, OpenAI said. They will appear ‘when there’s a relevant sponsored product or service based on your current conversation,’ as per the company.
- OpenAI has further said that these ads will be ‘clearly labeled and separated from the organic answer’.
- OpenAI has claimed it won't use a user's personal information or prompts to collect data for ads.
Google and Meta, OpenAI's rivals, have dominated the digital advertising space for years. They incorporate ads into some of their AI features already.
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OpenAI was originally founded as a nonprofit with a mission to safely build better-than-human AI. However, last year it reorganized the ownership structure, converting its business into a public benefit corporation.
OpenAI said Friday that its pursuit of advertising will be “always in support” of its original mission to ensure its AI technology benefits humanity.
Despite OpenAI's claims, some experts have voiced concerns. Paddy Harrington, an analyst at research group Forrester said “Free services are never actually free and these public AI platforms need to generate revenue. Which leads to the adage: If the service is free, you’re the product.”
(With AP inputs)