The news: As OpenAI contemplates how and when to enter advertising, Google has continued to expand its ad landscape, with Gemini now woven into search and ads designed for conversational intent. 

Through its sheer dominance, Google is already training advertisers for a prompt-first web and ad ecosystem.

ChatGPT has grown its consumer usage to 810 million monthly active users (MAUs), far ahead of Gemini’s 346 million, per December Sensor Tower data cited by The Information, but the reality is that ChatGPT usage is not translating into revenues, making ad monetization an imperative for 2026.

Why it’s worth watching: OpenAI being cautious and deliberate about its ad strategy makes sense considering Perplexity’s early CPM-based ad strategy fell flat. The AI search company paused advertising deals because it found ad returns were limited. Ads were difficult for buyers to measure, and Perplexity feared cluttering AI search results and Comet browser.

• The challenge for any AI company that isn’t Google is how they can effectively weave ads within AI chats without breaking the conversational flow.
• Designing AI ad pricing (e.g., pay per impression vs. pay per mention) and balancing revenues from subscriptions, enterprises, and ads is complex. 

2026 is the year for AI ad expansion: OpenAI is under investor pressure to convert its user base and engagement into revenues. 

Introducing an advertising model around ChatGPT could serve as a release valve, provided OpenAI can seamlessly integrate ads without disrupting user engagement or raising ethical red flags.

What this means for advertisers: ChatGPT represents the largest untapped attention pool in digital media. For advertisers, that means a new AI channel is coming—but it will look nothing like search or social.

OpenAI has the opportunity to define a new ad market around ChatGPT, but the longer it takes, the more it risks pushback from advertisers already attuned to Google’s AI ad ecosystem.