Next week, ChatGPT Ads will become available in 31 European countries, including Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Austria. Initial access will go through the OpenAI Ads Solutions team, agency partners, and technology partners, with self-service via Ads Manager following later this summer. This is OpenAI‘s largest expansion of the ad platform to date, following a February pilot in the United States and subsequent growth into eight additional markets over the past six months.

The stated purpose of the expansion is to support free and low-cost access to ChatGPT, aligning with the mission to democratize access to AI. As in existing markets, ads will only be shown to users on the Free and Go plans; Plus, Pro, and Enterprise subscriptions remain ad-free. OpenAI emphasizes that ads are presented as a tool for marketers to reach people while they actively explore, compare, and make decisions within ChatGPT conversations, rather than simply targeting keywords.

The company reiterates its advertising principles: conversations remain private from advertisers, customer data is not sold, ads are clearly labeled and separate from ChatGPT’s answers, and advertising does not influence those answers. Users retain control over ad personalization, and ad-free paid plans are offered as an alternative.

Alongside the market expansion, OpenAI describes progress in the platform’s technical capabilities. The ads platform now supports conversion optimization in addition to CPM and CPC bidding, geo-targeting, custom audiences, and expanded measurement through the OpenAI Pixel, Conversions API, and third-party integrations. The announcement reports that tens of thousands of marketers have already advertised on ChatGPT, and that platform development continues based on learnings from users and businesses.

OpenAI notes that while significant progress has been made in six months, the platform is still early in its development. Future work will focus on new formats, optimization tools, and measurement solutions, while maintaining the stated priorities of broadening AI access, protecting user trust, and helping businesses achieve their goals.