OpenAI is expanding its advertising efforts inside ChatGPT through a new partnership with Smartly, according to a report by Business Insider. The company has brought in the adtech platform as its first creative partner focused on improving how ads are built and delivered within the chatbot.
Smartly will first assist brands in entertainment, retail, and sports to adjust how their ChatGPT ads perform in real time. Laura Desmond, Smartly’s CEO, told according to Business Insider that the goal goes beyond simple tweaks and instead points toward a future where ads within ChatGPT can engage in dialogue rather than just sit beside a response.
What Smartly Does
Smartly is a Helsinki-founded, New York-based platform that helps brands automate and optimise advertising campaigns in real time across Meta, Google, TikTok, Snap, Reddit, Amazon, and Pinterest. The company manages over $6 billion in annual ad spend for more than 800 brands, including Spotify and Uber, reported approximately $101 million in revenue in 2025, and is valued at around $300 million. It holds Forrester Wave leader status in Creative Advertising Technologies.
In its initial role, Smartly will help brands in entertainment, retail, and sports refine their ChatGPT ad campaigns based on performance data. The longer-term goal is to build interactive ad formats that replicate ChatGPT's conversational interface, turning paid placements into exchanges that can respond to user queries rather than displaying static sponsored links.
The Conversational Advertising Concept
Smartly has experience running conversational ad formats on platforms like Meta. For example, a chatbot ad for UK retailer Boots pops up and provides gift recommendations based on user responses. The company claims this format was nearly five times as effective in driving sales compared to standard Meta ads.
Smartly envisions similar formats for ChatGPT, allowing users to ask questions and receive tailored responses while interacting with ads. Applying a conversational ad mechanic inside ChatGPT would mean ads that follow the conversation's context, respond to what the user says, and adjust their message in real time.
How OpenAI's Adtech Ecosystem Is Taking Shape
Smartly is not the only adtech partner to join OpenAI's advertising program. Previously,Criteo announced it has joined the ChatGPT ad pilot, extending the partner ecosystem beyond Smartly. OpenAI also plans to launch self-serve advertising tools this month, removing the current $200,000 minimum commitment and opening the platform to mid-market advertisers. International pilots in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand are to follow. reports say the company has generated over $100 million in annualised revenue with more than 600 advertisers since its February launch.
OpenAI has said ads will remain clearly labeled and separate from the chatbot’s organic answers. User conversations with ChatGPT will not be shared with advertisers, and under-18 users will not see ads. Certain topics, including politics and health, are excluded from ad placements. The company emphasizes gradual development to ensure users are comfortable with conversational ads while maintaining trust.
Competitive Context
Google and Meta both operate AI-optimised ad formats at scale, but neither has deployed conversational ad units inside an AI assistant interface in the way Smartly is describing for ChatGPT. Microsoft Copilot embeds paid placements in conversation responses, though without the performance-data optimisation layer Smartly provides.
The Smartly partnership reflects a pattern that characterised the early development of search advertising: a platform launches, then an adtech ecosystem forms around it, bringing in specialist creative and optimisation capabilities. Analysts project OpenAI's ad revenue could reach $25 billion by 2030, according to Busness Insider. This figure incorporates assumptions about format development, user growth, and advertiser adoption that have not yet been tested at scale.
Recap
What is Smartly's role as OpenAI's first creative ad partner?
Smartly will initially help brands in entertainment, retail, and sports optimise their ChatGPT ad campaigns based on performance data. The longer-term ambition is to build interactive ad formats that replicate ChatGPT's conversational interface, turning paid placements into exchanges that respond to user queries rather than displaying static sponsored links. Business Insider reported the partnership.
What are conversational ad formats in the context of ChatGPT?
Conversational ad formats are placements that can respond to a user's inputs, follow the context of a conversation, and adjust their content based on what the user says. Smartly points to a campaign it ran for UK retailer Boots on Meta, where a chatbot-style format guided users through gift recommendations and drove sales nearly five times more effectively than standard Meta ads, according to Smartly. OpenAI has not announced a launch timeline for interactive ad formats inside ChatGPT.
How is OpenAI expanding its advertising program in 2026?
OpenAI launched advertising on February 9, 2026, with an initial $200,000 minimum commitment. The company reports over 600 advertisers and more than $100 million in annualised revenue at the six-week mark. Self-serve tools removing the minimum commitment are scheduled to launch in April 2026, with international pilots in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to follow. Criteo has also joined the pilot alongside Smartly.
