OpenAI is reporting positive results for its advertising platform after less than 200 days. According to the company, ChatGPT Ads is projected to generate annual revenue of more than one billion dollars if business continues at this pace. At the same time, Google has embarked on a new path: using AI to improve existing ad formats. The first test involves interpreted reviews that appear in sponsored ads in shopping search results.
OpenAI reports an annualized revenue of one billion dollars for ChatGPT Ads. This means that revenue will surpass the billion-dollar mark if the business continues to grow linearly. Given the upcoming holiday season, this seems quite likely. According to OpenAI, tens of thousands of advertisers are now using the platform. Starting in September, businesses will also be able to book ads through the Ads Manager in India, Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. Advertising, along with subscriptions, enterprise offers, and API usage, has become another pillar of the business model.
OpenAI emphasizes that ads appear separately from the chatbot’s responses and are not intended to influence them. Advertisers do not have access to private conversations. However, information from the current chat and—depending on the settings—from previous ChatGPT usage can be used to select relevant ads. Users can control the personalization. Ads appear only in the “Free” and “Go” versions. ChatGPT remains free for users paying €20 per month or more.
Between financing and trust
The introduction of advertising was controversial from the outset. As reported in January that OpenAI intended to use it, among other things, to finance the high costs of developing and operating its AI. Experts also saw a risk that advertising could undermine user trust.
Demis Hassabis, head of Google DeepMind, also expressed criticism on Axios . He considers advertising to be an established financing model in principle, but distinguishes between search engines and AI assistants. With an assistant that is supposed to act in the user’s interest, advertising could more significantly impact the relationship of trust.
The Network Advertising Initiative also sees open questions , including regarding labeling, data usage, and commercial recommendations. At the same time, it points out that both the advertising industry and AI providers are showing great interest in this new advertising environment.
OpenAI plans to expand ChatGPT Ads to more markets and develop additional ad formats, campaign objectives, and measurement capabilities. Currently available features include CPC and performance-based bidding, geographic targeting, custom audiences, and measurement tools such as pixels and the Conversions API.
“What customers love”
Meanwhile, Google is experimenting with AI-generated summaries of customer reviews within sponsored search results. This could create an additional trust factor directly within the ad for advertisers. At the same time, the question arises as to how much Google’s own AI should influence the perception of a paid advertisement.
In the test described by Search Engine Watch, the headline “What Customers Love” appears below a sponsored result. Google summarizes customer reviews using AI. A note identifies the text as “AI-generated from the store’s ratings and reviews.” The test can be observed on both mobile devices and desktop computers.
This can generate additional attention for retailers. Positive experiences with delivery times, service, or products become visible not only on the website but also within the search results. Search Engine Watch sees this as having the potential for higher click-through rates. However, the test has not yet proven whether this effect actually materializes.
Google takes over part of the advertising message.
This test is part of a series of experiments in which Google integrates AI-generated content into paid search results. Google had previously tested AI summaries beneath the descriptions of search ads. A Google spokesperson explained that this is a small-scale experiment to test whether additional AI-generated context helps people make decisions.
This changes the control advertisers have over how their ads are displayed. Alongside their own advertising messages, a summary generated by Google may appear. This can highlight positive reviews, but also carries the risk that the AI will weight or interpret content differently than the retailer would.
Transparency is becoming more important
Google is simultaneously expanding its labeling of AI-generated content in advertising. Since July 2026, the “How this ad was made” section has been available, allowing users to see whether AI was used in creating or editing an ad. Google also points out that AI-generated content can contain errors.
The new test reveals a further shift in search engine marketing: Google is no longer limiting itself to delivering ads, but is increasingly generating its own content within the ad space. This can create additional opportunities for retailers to make customer reviews visible. At the same time, the reliability of these summaries and their impact on ad perception and performance will be crucial.
Anthropic remains explicitly opposed to advertising. Every action taken by Google and ChatGPT provides the Claude maker with ammunition for further campaigns against “commercialization.” According to their own statements, Anthropic has recently become profitable even without this revenue stream .
