ChatGPT Ads Launch in India: Who Will See Them and How Will They Work?

Millions of ChatGPT users in India are set to see advertisements as OpenAI expands its ad-supported model into one of its biggest and fastest-growing markets. The company said on Thursday that ChatGPT Ads will initially be available to logged-in users aged 18 and above who use the Free and Go plans. Users subscribed to Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Education will continue to get an ad-free experience.

The Go plan is priced at ₹399 per month in India. When OpenAI identifies a suitable sponsored product or service, the advertisement may appear below a ChatGPT response. The company said these promotions will be clearly labelled as sponsored content and visually separated from the AI-generated answer. OpenAI has also placed restrictions on where advertisements can appear. Ads will not be shown to accounts identified as belonging to users under 18, and the company said sponsored content will be kept away from sensitive or regulated subjects such as politics, health and mental health.

India has become a major market for ChatGPT. The platform had around 330 million unique monthly users in the country in May 2026, compared with about 297 million in December 2025. The growing user base makes India an important market for OpenAI as it develops new ways to generate revenue. The company says advertising will not influence ChatGPT's answers. Advertisers will not be able to pay to change, promote or shape the chatbot's responses. Instead, ChatGPT will continue to generate answers according to what its system determines is most helpful to the user.

OpenAI has also said that advertisers will not receive access to individual conversations, chat histories, memories or personal information. The company says it does not sell user data to advertisers. Advertisers will instead receive aggregated campaign information, including metrics such as impressions and clicks. OpenAI has selected WPP and Omnicom as its first advertising agency partners in India. The agencies will support brands with areas including advertising strategy, creative development, campaign measurement, brand safety and execution. More agency partnerships are expected to be added as the programme expands.

Businesses will also be able to advertise directly through ChatGPT Ads Manager. OpenAI plans to provide self-serve access in India from September 4, with advertising budgets starting at ₹725 per day. The company's advertising push follows an earlier rollout in the United States. OpenAI announced its intention to test ads in ChatGPT in January 2026, with the first US pilot beginning in February. The programme was subsequently expanded to markets including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Mexico, Brazil, Japan and South Korea, before reaching 31 European countries.

For OpenAI, advertising represents another potential revenue stream at a time when the company is spending heavily on AI infrastructure and computing capacity. The strategy could be particularly important for monetising the large number of people who use ChatGPT without subscribing to its premium plans.

The move comes amid reports that OpenAI is also exploring a potential public-market listing. Meanwhile, its revenue has continued to grow, although so have its expenses and losses. A Wall Street Journal report said OpenAI's revenue reached $6.7 billion in the June 2026 quarter, compared with $5.7 billion in the March quarter, while its operating loss reportedly rose from $9.3 billion to $12.3 billion. With India now joining OpenAI's expanding advertising network, the rollout could become an important test of whether AI-powered advertising can generate substantial revenue without disrupting the conversational experience that has made ChatGPT popular.

Disclaimer: This image is taken from Bloomberg.