The inevitable has happened. Ads are coming to ChatGPT, and here are my initial thoughts.
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OpenAI sets the precedent: Soon, all of our chatbots will be swarmed with ads. Sure, Anthropic can take the high moral ground now, but those SuperBowl commercials gotta break even somehow. Also, remember the days when Google claimed that “there will be no banners ever?” What’s great about Moore’s Law is that even promises get broken faster.
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Big Tech don’t lose: Google can absorb the cost of Gemini since ads are already on search, while Microsoft will continue to bleed OpenAI dry and ditch them for their own model. Even as token providers, big tech has the leverage to bundle packages within existing users’ ecosystem (Workspace/Office).
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Mixed news for marketers: More paid media channels mean our jobs are going to last a bit longer, yay! Tho I’m not sure how effective AI ads would be, as it would be more akin to Google AdWords than Facebook ads. It would be based mainly on intent rather than demographics, and interpreting intent would still consume lots of running water for a while. It might pay off for B2B or high-ticket items, but otherwise, the good old low CPM Facebook days are gone.
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A sliver or silver lining: There is still no moat. Breakthrough models come out all the time (thanks, China), and the cost of switching is so low, making it harder for monopolies to constrain everything inside their gardens (e.g. current Google AI Pro/Ultra does include quotas for Claude and GPT).
So, I’m not a full-on cynic just yet! Corporate adoption is going to be slow as it has always been, but there are more choices than ever for tinkerers, small businesses, and non-profits. I’m just waiting for this hype cycle to come down a little, less noise and distractions, and more space for clarity and informed judgment.
Meta
Originally written and published on February 23, 2025