By Reuters | Updated: March 21, 2026
March 21 (Reuters) – OpenAI will begin showing ads to all users of the free and Go versions of ChatGPT in the United States in the coming weeks, a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement to Reuters.
The move was first reported by The Information.
OpenAI has recently integrated Criteo, an advertising technology firm that provides an interface for buying ads and improving targeting, into its advertising pilot for the free and Go versions of ChatGPT in the U.S., Criteo said in a statement earlier this month.
Criteo has been pitching advertisers on committing between $50,000 and $100,000 in spending, according to The Information.
OpenAI has also advised advertisers that supplying more variations of ad text and visuals can increase how often ads are shown and improve performance, the Information added.
OpenAI has been exploring advertising as a new revenue stream as usage of ChatGPT has surged, Reuters has reported.
The company is seeking to diversify revenue as it faces rising costs for computing infrastructure amid intensifying competition in generative AI.
Reporting by Bipasha Dey and Ananya Palyekar in Bengaluru Editing by Rod Nickel and Nia Williams
© Thomson Reuters 2026
