OpenAI’s advertising business has reached a $1 billion annualized revenue run rate, the company said Monday, as it expands ChatGPT ad sales to India, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa alongside the United States.
The milestone follows a U.S. pilot launched earlier this year that crossed $100 million in annualized revenue within six weeks. Advertisers can now purchase ads directly via OpenAI’s Ads Manager, which has helped attract small- and medium-sized businesses, now representing a material share of the platform’s ad spending.
The growth comes as OpenAI targets $2.5 billion in annual ad revenue by 2026, according to Emarketer AI analyst Nate Elliott. Elliott called the $1 billion run rate “incredibly impressive and terribly disappointing,” noting it remains well short of the 2026 goal. The announcement coincides with OpenAI’s broader push to diversify revenue streams ahead of a potential public listing, which is expected as soon as 2027.
Ads are currently displayed to users on ChatGPT’s free tier and the lower-priced Go plan. OpenAI has not disclosed the geographic breakdown of revenue, though advertisers outside the U.S. are contributing a growing share. The company continues to face competition from established digital ad giants Alphabet’s Google and Meta, which generate hundreds of billions in annual ad revenue.
