OpenAI expands ChatGPT ads to logged‑out users, drops spend minimum

OpenAI has begun serving ChatGPT ads to users who are not logged in, while lowering the pilot’s minimum spend from $200,000 to $50,000, a move that immediately expands the pool of eligible impressions and addresses advertiser complaints about limited inventory [1].

Expanding the audience

OpenAI’s ad pilot, which launched in February, originally restricted ads to logged‑in users, a rule that limited the number of impressions available to advertisers. By rolling ads out to logged‑out users, the company instantly widens its addressable audience, a change confirmed by a source who began seeing two ads while using ChatGPT without an account [1]. The ads appear inline within the chat flow, a design that the source described as “pretty seamless” and not disruptive to trust.

Pricing and performance shifts

The reduction of the spend floor to $50,000 follows advertiser feedback that the original $200,000 minimum was “attractive on paper” but hard to exhaust because of low frequency and inventory constraints [1]. Sensor Tower data show ad volume surged about 600% week‑over‑week by mid‑March, and coverage of mobile users rose to roughly 5% from just 1% at the start of the month [2]. Concurrently, CPM rates fell from $60 to as low as $25 within nine weeks, reflecting the lower spend threshold and higher fill rates [3].

OpenAI is also moving toward performance‑based pricing. The company plans to charge for clicks rather than impressions, and a conversion‑tracking pixel is already live for some advertisers, enabling measurement of leads, orders, page views, and subscriptions [3]. These steps aim to attract performance‑driven budgets that have traditionally favored platforms with robust conversion metrics.

Competitive context

The ad rollout is proceeding slowly, prompting frustration among major agencies such as WPP, Omnicom, and Dentsu, which have each committed $200,000‑$250,000—double the typical experimental spend [2]. While OpenAI cites “early testing” and a focus on consumer experience as reasons for the cautious pace, analysts see the gradual scale‑up as a hedge against competitors like Google, which dominates search ads with $252 billion in annual revenue [2]. If OpenAI can sustain the current growth trajectory, its conversational ad channel could become a new pillar alongside search, social, and retail media, as projected by Truist analysts [2].

What to watch

• Inventory rollout – OpenAI’s timeline for extending ads to the remaining 95% of mobile users.
• Performance pricing – Adoption rate of click‑based pricing and the impact on CPMs.
• Agency commitment – Whether major ad agencies increase spend as inventory and measurement tools improve.

By opening ads to unauthenticated users and trimming the spend floor, OpenAI is addressing the supply‑demand gap that has constrained its pilot’s revenue potential. The next test will be whether the expanded inventory and performance metrics can translate into sustained advertiser spend and a viable long‑term ad business.