OpenAI announced on Thursday that it will begin displaying advertisements on its ChatGPT Free and Go subscription tiers for users in India. This follows a change to the company's terms of service earlier this month, which indicated that ads would be shown to users of the AI assistant.
The company stated in February that it has more than 100 million weekly active ChatGPT users in India, with a significant portion on the free or Go tiers. OpenAI will initially feature ads for 50 brands, having partnered with agencies WPP and Omnicom for this initiative.
Next month, OpenAI plans to launch an ad manager, enabling marketers to create campaigns with a daily minimum budget of ₹725 ($7.60). Dave Dugan, head of global ads solutions at OpenAI, commented that this will allow businesses to introduce themselves "at relevant, high-context moments when decisions are beginning to take shape."
OpenAI started showing ads to US users in February and expanded the program to Europe earlier this month. The company is reportedly seeking to increase and solidify its revenue sources ahead of a potential IPO, expected this year or next.