New Delhi: OpenAI will begin displaying advertisements on ChatGPT in India for adult users on its Free and Go subscription plans, extending an ad-based revenue model to one of the chatbot’s biggest markets.
The ads will be shown to logged-in users aged 18 and above on the free version of ChatGPT and the Go plan, which is priced at Rs 399 a month in India. Sponsored products and services will be placed below the chatbot’s response and will be distinctly marked as advertisements, the company said.
Subscribers using Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Education plans will not see advertisements.
OpenAI said advertisers would not be given access to users’ conversations, chat history, saved memories or other personal information. The company said it would not sell individual user data and would provide advertisers only with aggregated campaign metrics, including impressions and clicks.
The company added that advertisements would be blocked for accounts identified as belonging to minors or those where users have stated they are below 18. Ads will also be excluded from responses involving sensitive or regulated subjects, including health, mental health and politics.
More than 50 brands are expected to begin advertising on ChatGPT this week. OpenAI plans to make its self-service ChatGPT Ads Manager available to Indian businesses from September 4, allowing advertisers to launch campaigns with daily budgets beginning at Rs 725.
The India expansion comes as OpenAI seeks to build new income streams ahead of a proposed initial public offering. ChatGPT crossed one billion weekly users globally earlier this month, while India is its second-largest market, with more than 100 million weekly users as of February 2026.
OpenAI announced in January its intention to test advertisements on ChatGPT. The pilot was launched in the United States in February and reportedly crossed $100 million in annualised revenue within six weeks.
Following the US trial, the company expanded the ad programme to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Brazil, Japan and South Korea. Last week, it rolled out ChatGPT Ads in 31 European countries, including Germany, France, Spain and Italy.
(Inputs from IANS)