OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has offered his most direct comments yet on the prospect of introducing advertising in ChatGPT, signaling cautious openness as the company faces mounting operational costs and gears up for its next major product release.
In the premiere episode of OpenAI’s official podcast, Altman revealed that while no ad product has been launched, the idea is under active consideration. “I’m not totally against it,” he said. “I can point to areas where I like ads. I think ads on Instagram are kinda cool—I’ve bought a bunch of stuff from them. But I think it’d take a lot of care to get right.”
The remarks mark a shift from his earlier stance. In a 2024 discussion at Harvard Business School, Altman had called advertising a “last resort” for OpenAI. But with reported annual operating costs of $3 to $4 billion and projected revenue of $12.7 billion in 2025, pressure to diversify monetization is growing.
OpenAI has so far relied heavily on venture capital—including a record-setting $40 billion round in March—and major backing from Microsoft and Nvidia. It also recently secured a $200 million contract with the U.S. Department of Defense. Yet as generative AI becomes central to everyday digital life, the search for sustainable revenue streams is intensifying.
Crucially, Altman emphasized the importance of preserving user trust. While open to monetization, he ruled out letting advertisers influence ChatGPT’s responses. “If we started modifying the output… in exchange for who is paying us more, that would feel really bad,” he said. “That’d be like a trust-destroying moment.”
Instead, he floated alternatives such as affiliate links, transaction-based models, or non-intrusive ads placed in sidebars or footers—approaches that wouldn’t compromise the integrity of ChatGPT’s answers.
As competitors like Google’s Gemini explore in-line ads within AI-generated content, OpenAI is under pressure to respond. While there’s no set timeline, Altman’s remarks make it clear: advertising in ChatGPT is no longer off the table—it’s a matter of when and how, not if.
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