Axotron Take
OpenAI spent years saying it wasn't about ads. Now it is. When you have 500M users and need to fund $50B in infrastructure, the math forces your hand. The product just changed.
Full Notes
OpenAI has launched an Ads Manager beta for US advertisers, officially turning ChatGPT into an advertising platform. This comes as OpenAI President Greg Brockman testified to the US Senate that the company expects to spend approximately $50 billion on infrastructure in 2026 alone.
The math is straightforward. At $50 billion in infrastructure spend, subscriptions alone cannot cover costs. ChatGPT has over 500 million users. That audience is worth enormous amounts to advertisers. The move was probably inevitable from a financial standpoint.
What changes for users is significant. ChatGPT responses could now be influenced by advertiser relationships — whether through sponsored answers, promoted products, or subtle prioritization. The model that was built to be a neutral, helpful assistant is now also a monetization surface.
This is a defining moment for the AI industry's business model. Every major AI company is looking for sustainable revenue beyond subscriptions. OpenAI just chose the most proven path in tech history — and the most controversial one. Watch whether Claude and Gemini follow or differentiate hard against it.
