OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, is exploring the idea of integrating advertising into its artificial intelligence products. As the company evolves into a for-profit organization, it seeks new ways to generate revenue beyond its current offerings, including its popular AI-powered search engine and the widely-used ChatGPT.
In a recent interview with the Financial Times, OpenAI’s CFO, Sarah Friar, revealed that the company, valued at a staggering $150 billion, is considering the introduction of ads but plans to be “thoughtful about when and where we implement them.” This move comes after OpenAI secured $6.6 billion in funding last October and has been expanding its team, including recruiting advertising talent from tech giants like Meta and Google.
Although Friar acknowledged the potential for future ad models, she emphasized that OpenAI is not actively pursuing advertising at this time. “Our current business is experiencing rapid growth, and we see significant opportunities within our existing business model,” she stated in a follow-up statement.
Despite this, OpenAI is keen to find new ways to monetize its products. Smaller competitors, such as Perplexity, have already begun piloting ads in their AI-powered search engines, and OpenAI is keen to keep pace with its rivals.
The company has made a strategic push to bring in executives with deep advertising experience, including Kevin Weil, OpenAI’s chief product officer, who previously played a key role in building ad-supported products at Instagram. Friar praised Weil’s experience, stating, “The good news with Kevin Weil at the wheel is that he knows how this [introducing ads] works.”
In addition to Weil, OpenAI also hired Shivakumar Venkataraman, former head of Google’s search advertising team, as vice president. These moves underscore OpenAI’s commitment to tapping into advertising as a potential revenue stream, but the company’s leadership remains divided on what advertising could look like on its platform.
While advertising has proven to be an incredibly successful monetization model for tech giants like Google and Meta, it also comes with its own set of challenges. One of the key concerns raised by OpenAI executives is the potential impact on user experience. Ads can shift a company’s focus from its users to its advertisers, which could affect the integrity of the platform. Friar noted that while advertising may eventually become a viable option, there is still “lots of low-hanging fruit” in terms of improving the company’s existing business model.
The growing costs associated with training AI models have pushed companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Elon Musk’s xAI to explore new ways to commercialize their technology. OpenAI’s revenue has surged to approximately $4 billion annually, primarily driven by ChatGPT’s immense success, which has led to over 250 million weekly active users. However, the steep costs of developing cutting-edge AI models mean that OpenAI is expected to burn through more than $5 billion in cash over the next few years.
For now, OpenAI’s primary revenue sources remain its application programming interface (API) and the sale of individual and enterprise licenses for ChatGPT. As the company continues to scale, it may turn to other monetization strategies, including advertising, to supplement its revenue.
As AI continues to reshape industries and redefine the future of work, the integration of ads into AI products like ChatGPT remains a topic of much debate and speculation. While no definitive plans have been made yet, the possibility of advertising in OpenAI’s products is something to keep an eye on in the coming months.
This is still hearsay for now, but the conversation around AI and advertising is certainly heating up.
