- OpenAI started serving ads to ChatGPT users in the United States
- This currently only affects users on the Free and Go tiers.
- Many users are unhappy with the new policy
There has been much discussion about the sustainability of OpenAI’s business model, with the AI pioneer apparently struggling to turn a profit despite charging up to $200 per month for ChatGPT’s premium plans. One way to supplement that revenue is through serving ads, and they’re currently being rolled out to users on the chatbot’s Free and Go tiers — and not everyone is happy.
As shown in a post on the company’s official blog, OpenAI says it has started testing ads for logged in users based in the United States on the Free or Go tiers, meaning people on the Plus, Pro, Business, and Enterprise plans are not affected.
OpenAI sought to reassure users by saying that advertisements have no effect on the responses provided by ChatGPT and that “we keep your conversations with ChatGPT private from advertisers.” This means that “advertisers do not have access to your chats, chat history, memories, or personal information,” OpenAI said. “Advertisers only receive aggregate information about the performance of their ads, such as the number of views or clicks.”
Users who ChatGPT knows are under 18 will not see ads, and advertising will not appear next to “sensitive or regulated topics” like health and politics. Free users can also opt out of seeing ads at the cost of “fewer daily free messages.” OpenAI has not extended this limit, nor is it clear whether Go users can opt out.
If you don’t like an announcement, you can reject it or send your feedback to OpenAI. This will influence the ads you see in the future. You can also delete advertising data collected about you from ChatGPT settings.
OpenAI explained how the ads work, saying: “During testing, we decide which ad to serve by matching ads submitted by advertisers with the topic of your conversation, your past chats, and your past interactions with the ads.” This might mean you see ads for meal kits or delivery services if you’re searching for recipes, for example.
“Our goal is for ads to support broader access to more powerful ChatGPT features while maintaining the trust people have in ChatGPT for important and personal tasks,” OpenAI added. “We start with a test to learn, listen and make sure we are having a good experience.”
The reaction has begun
It probably won’t come as a surprise to know that many users are unhappy with this decision. On Reddit, for example, user serya5555 was blunt in his comments, stating: “ChatGPT is over. Better alternatives exist. Unfortunately, they couldn’t keep their lead.”
Another Reddit user said: “If I get one ad, I’ll switch to Claude,” referring to the rival chatbot service. A thread on Reddit referencing OpenAI’s decision was titled “And so enshittification begins,” referring to the process by which a service that originally sought to serve its customers gradually turns toward its investors, resulting in a decline in product quality.
Another potential point of contention is the fact that Go users currently have to pay $8 per month to access the service, but that apparently doesn’t exempt them from seeing ads. To some, this may seem trivial when people are already being charged for ChatGPT Go.
With OpenAI apparently losing money, the company has a strong incentive to find new ways to make money and secure ChatGPT’s long-term future. In this case, it seems like ads are a way for OpenAI to achieve this. We’ll have to see what impact this has on the overall ChatGPT experience and whether users are sufficiently deterred from seeking alternatives at scale.
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