OpenAI's ChatGPT advertising dominated by B2B software companies

A study by marketing agency Graphite reveals that B2B software and SaaS companies dominate the advertising landscape on ChatGPT. Between March and August, business software accounted for nearly 20% of all ad impressions on the platform, followed by professional services at 8.5% and developer tools at 4.6%.

OpenAI launched advertisements on its primary AI service in February to establish revenue streams ahead of a planned initial public offering next year. The company aims to serve ads relevant to conversation context while prohibiting sensitive categories such as politics, gambling, and legal services. Notable advertisers appearing frequently in the data include Monday.com, HubSpot, Resume.io, and Canva. The form builder Jotform notably deployed over 930 distinct ad variations within a single month.

Data indicates that click-through rates for ChatGPT ads more than doubled between late March and early September, suggesting improved targeting efficiency. However, Graphite noted that less than half of ad-eligible users have been served an ad, indicating significant room for growth in reach. Separately, OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar announced that the company’s annual run-rate revenue has surpassed $1 billion.