OpenAI tests ads in ChatGPT at premium rates, while Anthropic markets Claude as ad-free, igniting debate over AI trust and sponsored answers

photo by Mike Kemp / In Pictures via Getty Images

A version of this article originally appeared in Quartz’s AI & Tech newsletter. Sign up here to get the latest AI & tech news, analysis and insights straight to your inbox.

ChatGPT finally joined much of the rest of the internet and started running ads. On Feb. 9, OpenAI began testing sponsored placements at the bottom of answers for free-tier users.

OpenAI is asking some brands to commit at least $200,000 and charging $60 per thousand ad views, a rate that puts it in the same bracket as premium TV and streaming. A typical banner ad on the open web costs $2 to $10. OpenAI is pricing itself alongside the Super Bowl, not the sidebar.

Companies are biting: Williams-Sonoma, Target $TGT 0.22%, Adobe $ADBE 0.64%, and Audible have all reportedly signed on.

But this isn't search advertising with a chatbot skin. It's something fundamentally different, and the distinction matters.

In traditional search, users type a query and receive a list of options. The ad sits beside or above organic results, and the user understands they are comparison shopping. The power dynamic is clear. In a chatbot........

© Quartz