OpenAI Tests ChatGPT Ads With a $200K Minimum Buy

ChatGPT has been a “no-ads” environment in the minds of most marketers—something closer to a utility than a media channel. That assumption is getting stress-tested right now.

If you’re a B2B marketer or media buyer, this matters because the moment ads enter an answer engine, the rules of performance marketing change. You’re no longer just competing for clicks in feeds and search results. You’re competing for attention inside the interface where buyers ask questions, compare vendors, and pressure-test claims.

The news: OpenAI is testing ad placements in ChatGPT

According to Google News coverage under “OpenAI Advertising,” OpenAI is moving to test advertising inside the ChatGPT app. The report states: “OpenAI is updating its app to test ChatGPT's ad placements immediately.” (Google News: OpenAI Advertising)

In a separate Google News item under the same “OpenAI Advertising” coverage, OpenAI also confirmed the pricing floor for participating advertisers. The report headline states: “EXCLUSIVE: OpenAI Confirms $200,000 Minimum Commitment for ChatGPT Ads.” (Google News: OpenAI Advertising)

Those two points together—ad placements being tested now, and a $200,000 minimum commitment—tell you what kind of ad product this is likely to be in the near term: not self-serve, not casual experimentation, and not designed for small-budget testing.

What this means for B2B marketers (and answer engine strategy)

1) “Answer engines” are becoming paid media environments

ChatGPT joining the paid media world is a signal that answer engines are evolving from purely organic influence surfaces into monetized distribution channels.

That matters beyond ChatGPT. Your buyers already use multiple answer engines—ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Copilot, Perplexity, Brave, Meta AI—to get to “good enough” answers faster. If one major platform starts inserting ads into the experience, you should assume the category is moving toward more explicit commercialization.

2) The minimum commitment changes who can play—and how you plan

A confirmed $200,000 minimum commitment (Google News: OpenAI Advertising) means this won’t behave like the early days of social ads where anyone could test with a few thousand dollars. For B2B teams, that has immediate implications:

• This is likely to be an enterprise-friendly buy, not a scrappy growth experiment.
• Procurement, legal, and brand governance will show up early in the process.
• Measurement expectations will be high because the entry ticket is high.

Even if you’re not planning to spend at that level, the existence of a high minimum commitment is a market signal: OpenAI is positioning this as premium inventory.

3) AEO becomes the “insurance policy” against paid placement shifts

If ads begin appearing inside ChatGPT, you can’t treat organic visibility in answer engines as optional. Paid placements can change what users see first, but they don’t eliminate the need for strong, verifiable brand presence.

This is where Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) stops being a buzzword and becomes a practical risk management strategy: you want your product, positioning, and proof points to be easy for answer engines to retrieve and restate—whether or not an ad is present.

In other words: if the interface changes, your fundamentals shouldn’t have to.

What to do right now (practical action items)

You don’t need to guess how the ad unit works to take smart steps today. Focus on readiness.

1) Decide whether you’re a realistic buyer at a $200K minimum

OpenAI has confirmed a $200,000 minimum commitment for ChatGPT ads (Google News: OpenAI Advertising). Make a clear internal call:

• If you can’t justify that level, treat this as a competitive intelligence event and double down on AEO and brand defensibility.
• If you can justify it, start building the internal business case now (objectives, guardrails, creative approach, and measurement plan).

2) Prepare your “answer-ready” messaging

If ChatGPT is testing ad placements “immediately” (Google News: OpenAI Advertising), the window between early tests and broader availability can be short.

You should standardize:

• Your category definition (the simplest way to explain what you do)
• Your differentiation (3–5 crisp points)
• Your proof (customer outcomes, third-party validation, and concrete claims you can stand behind)

Keep it tight. Answer engines reward clarity.

3) Audit your brand’s presence across answer engines

Even though this news is specifically about ChatGPT (Google News: OpenAI Advertising), your buyers don’t live in one tool.

Run a quick, repeatable audit:

• Ask ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot, Brave, and Meta AI the same “best vendors for X” and “what is Y” questions in your category.
• Note whether your brand appears, how it’s described, and what competitors are positioned as.
• Capture the exact phrasing and themes that show up.

This gives you a baseline before ad placements change the experience.

4) Tighten your measurement expectations now

With a high minimum commitment confirmed (Google News: OpenAI Advertising), any paid test—if you pursue one—will need a measurement plan that matches the spend.

Even without platform-specific details, you can align internally on:

• What counts as success (pipeline influence, qualified demand, brand lift, or something else)
• What you will not optimize for (e.g., cheap clicks if they don’t convert)
• How you will compare this channel to existing spend

5) Build a “defensive” plan for competitors buying the placement

If ads are being tested in ChatGPT now (Google News: OpenAI Advertising), assume at least one competitor will pursue it as soon as they can.

Your defense is not panic-spending. It’s:

• Stronger positioning
• Better proof
• Higher consistency across the places answer engines pull from

That’s AEO work, and it compounds.

Bottom line

OpenAI is testing ad placements in the ChatGPT app and has confirmed a $200,000 minimum commitment to run those ads (Google News: OpenAI Advertising). For B2B marketers, this is the moment to treat answer engines as a serious channel shift—and to get your AEO fundamentals in place before paid placements reshape what buyers see first.