Forbes January 20, 2026
Last week, OpenAI said it would begin testing advertisements within its popular chatbot ChatGPT in the coming weeks, targeting adult users in the United States who use the free tier or the company’s new $8-per-month ChatGPT Go subscription. Premium subscribers on the Plus ($20/month), Pro ($200/month), Business and Enterprise tiers will remain ad-free.
This could be a watershed moment for generative AI as OpenAI becomes one of the first major AI companies to introduce advertising directly into a conversational chatbot. It also signals mounting financial pressure: despite reportedly exceeding an estimated $20 billion in annualized revenue by 2025, the company is burning through cash to fund its AI infrastructure ambitions.
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