OpenAI announced today that it is expanding ChatGPT Ads on several fronts, introducing a new visual ad format, adding a wider slate of measurement partners, and beginning brand suitability pilots to give advertisers more confidence in the conversations where their ads appear.
The visual ads will initially be tested during image generation in ChatGPT, starting later this month in the U.S. with a select group of advertisers. OpenAI says the ads will be clearly labeled and kept separate from generated images.
Why This Matters:
There’s a lot here, but the bigger story is that ChatGPT Ads is starting to look more like a full-fledged advertising platform.
On measurement, OpenAI is plugging into much of the infrastructure advertisers already use today. Hightouch, Tealium and LiveRamp can now send conversion data to ChatGPT Ads, while attribution partners including AppsFlyer, DV Rockerbox, Adjust, Branch, Kochava and Triple Whale can help advertisers measure performance. OpenAI is also working with Haus, Measured and WorkMagic on incrementality testing.
Early results are promising. According to DoubleVerify, DV Rockerbox found that WeightWatchers’ attributed cost per acquisition on ChatGPT Ads was 15.3% lower than its blended paid-search benchmark. Triple Whale, meanwhile, found that 93% of Portland Leather’s visitors from ChatGPT Ads were new.
The brand suitability work tackles another challenge: How do you determine whether a conversation is an appropriate place for an ad? OpenAI is developing pilots with DoubleVerify and IAS to independently evaluate its safeguards without giving the companies access to private user conversations. Qualifying advertisers can also use new Negative Phrases to establish narrower placement restrictions.
Experts React:
DoubleVerify has also put out their own press release about the news. Here’s what CEO Mark Zagorski had to say about the integration/collaboration with OpenAI:
“Advertisers want to understand not just whether a new channel is performing, but the business impact it’s actually driving. By bringing ChatGPT Ads into DV’s attribution measurement through DV Rockerbox, marketers can connect engagement on ChatGPT to outcomes and return on ad spend, giving them a clearer view of its role across the customer journey.”
And here’s more from Jake Dmochowski, VP of Growth, Weight Watchers, a DV customer:
“As new advertising channels emerge, we need to understand how they contribute to the broader customer journey. DV Rockerbox helped us put ChatGPT Ads performance into context alongside our existing investments, giving us an encouraging early signal and greater clarity as we evaluate how to scale.”
Our Take:
The visual format is the splashiest announcement, but the measurement and suitability infrastructure may be more important to ChatGPT Ads’ growth.
Advertisers need more than inventory. They need to know whether ads drive results, understand where those ads can appear and plug campaigns into the systems they already use. OpenAI is steadily checking those boxes. (Confidence, baby!)
Also, the new visual format suggests OpenAI isn’t simply transplanting traditional digital ads into ChatGPT. It’s beginning to experiment with formats built around what people are actually doing inside the product — in this case, generating images. That’s where things get REALLY interesting.
AdTechRadar is owned by Chris Harihar, an EVP at Mod Op. DoubleVerify is a Mod Op client.
