OpenAI May Soon Roll Out Ads Inside ChatGPT Responses 

OpenAI is reportedly preparing to introduce ads inside ChatGPT responses, marking one of the company’s most significant shifts since the chatbot launched. This new direction became public after hints of an “ads feature” were found inside the latest ChatGPT Android beta, and additional reports revealed that OpenAI’s leadership is actively exploring advertising inside the widely used AI tool.

For millions of people who use ChatGPT for school work, business, research, creative tasks, and daily questions, this potential update could reshape how the AI assistant works.

The first sign of the upcoming ChatGPT ads update came from Tibor Blaho, a developer who regularly investigates new versions of AI apps. After unpacking the new Android beta build of ChatGPT, he found several telling strings that were not present before. These included:

• “ads feature”

• “search ad”

• “search ads carousel”

• “bazaar content”

These labels imply that OpenAI is actively building an advertising system that could appear inside specific ChatGPT answers. Given how often upcoming features appear in app code before official launch, this is one of the clearest signs that ChatGPT ads are in active development.

Blaho also noted that OpenAI has spoken for months about experimenting with ads, but this is the first time clear technical evidence has surfaced that the feature is moving closer to release.

A new report from The Information revealed that OpenAI has internally discussed the idea of using ChatGPT memory to show more relevant ads. ChatGPT memory stores long-term preferences or important details about a user to give more personalised responses.

However, this raises a natural concern around AI privacy, especially for those who rely on ChatGPT for daily tasks. Using long-term user data to target ads could spark fresh conversations about how the company handles personal information.

Two strings in the Android beta;  “bazaar content” and “search ads carousel”, suggest that OpenAI may introduce a marketplace-style ad format. These could appear when users ask questions like:

• “Which phone should I buy?”

• “Suggest a laptop for online classes.”

• “What is the most suitable smartwatch under ₦100k?”

These ads would likely appear as product cards or carousel listings, similar to what users see on Google Shopping or Amazon.

According to the leak, the ads would not appear in regular conversations. They are more likely to show up around:

• search-style questions

• shopping queries

• travel planning

• service recommendations

This keeps advertising focused on commercial intent, not everyday chat.

The move towards ChatGPT advertising is not random. Several factors are pushing OpenAI in this direction.

• 1. AI Compute Costs Are Increasing Rapidly

  Running a powerful model like ChatGPT requires expensive hardware, data centres, and constant fine-tuning. As more people use ChatGPT globally, operational costs rise. Ads could create a sustainable way for OpenAI to support free ChatGPT users while keeping some advanced features behind paid plans.
  

• 2. Competitors Already Use AI Ads

  The AI industry is moving quickly towards the AI search engine model, and most major companies already use ads:

• Google Gemini now shows ads inside AI Overviews

• Perplexity AI has sponsored questions beside answers

OpenAI may simply be trying to compete in the same space.

Sam Altman previously described ads as a “last resort” and said he found them unsettling. But in an interview (on OpenAI’s podcast) from mid‑2025, Altman said: “We haven’t done any advertising product yet. I’m not totally against it.” 

This shift shows that the leadership now sees advertising in ChatGPT as a practical option rather than a general idea.

1. Free ChatGPT Users Could Get More Features

If ads help cover OpenAI’s costs, free users might receive:

• better usage limits

• quicker access before daily limits kick in

• upgraded tools

• improved browsing and search responses

This could benefit millions of users who rely on the free version of ChatGPT.

2. Paid Subscribers Will Likely Stay Ad-Free

Users on ChatGPT Plus, Team, or Enterprise plans will almost certainly remain free from advertising. This matches how other platforms separate free and paid experiences.

3. Privacy Questions Will Take Centre Stage

More and more people increasingly depend on AI tools for business planning, legal research, personal writing, and digital skills. Any move to connect ads with ChatGPT memory will raise questions such as:

• What data will be used?

• Can users opt out?

• Will memory stay private?

• How secure is the information stored by ChatGPT?

OpenAI will need to answer these questions clearly to maintain trust.

If OpenAI launches advertising directly inside ChatGPT answers, it could transform AI assistants into new-age search engines, similar to Google. Searches that typically occur in traditional browsers could shift to chatbots, which gives companies an incentive to place ads where user attention is moving.

This trend could reshape how Nigerians shop, research, compare products, and plan purchases online.

RELATED: OpenAI Says ChatGPT Can’t Give Legal, Health, or Financial Advice Anymore

Users should expect more updates in the coming months as OpenAI tests how ads will appear, how they will be personalised, and how they will fit into both free and paid plans.

Advertising inside AI tools is becoming the new standard across the industry. The real question is how well OpenAI can balance ads, user privacy, personalisation, and the core ChatGPT experience for millions of people worldwide, including here in Nigeria.