ChatGPT's new ad format fills the image generation loading screen with product carousels

OpenAI is launching a test later this month that will show display ads to ChatGPT users in the US while the chatbot generates an image, according to The Decoder. The ads appear below the image being generated, either as a carousel or a row of product images. They are labeled as advertising, kept separate from the generated image, and designed to show products in use or the experiences tied to them. The test begins with an initial group of advertisers.

Alongside the new format, OpenAI is expanding its measurement tools. Advertisers can send conversion data to ChatGPT Ads through Hightouch, Tealium and LiveRamp, with attribution providers AppsFlyer, Adjust and Branch joining the mix. Through Haus, Measured and WorkMagic, OpenAI is testing geo-based experiments to gauge actual ad impact.

On brand safety, the company is running pilot programs with DoubleVerify and Integral Ad Science that evaluate the ad environment without accessing real user conversations, and select advertisers can set negative keywords to keep their ads out of unsuitable conversations.

OpenAI has been running ads in ChatGPT since February, now in more than 40 countries, and reports an annualized revenue run rate of $1 billion from ads alone, with a goal of $100 billion in ad revenue by 2030. According to OpenAI, ChatGPT reaches 1.2 billion people weekly, though earlier this year only about 5 percent of users were paying for a subscription.