ChatGPT makes a definitive leap into advertising: OpenAI has officially announced the integration of ads into its popular chatbot, adopting a pay-per-click (PPC) model similar to what has driven Google's success for years. The company, pressured by high development and maintenance costs of models like GPT-5 and hardware bills to Nvidia, has opted to allow banners, sponsored links, and highlighted results within conversations. According to FayerWayer, advertisers will be able to bid to appear when users inquire about specific products, services, or categories, and OpenAI will charge each time a sponsored link is clicked. The major innovation is the revenue sharing with media whose content is cited in responses that include advertising, in an attempt to ease tensions with the publishing industry, which has historically criticized the use of its content by AI. Although the details of the revenue sharing have not been revealed, the message is clear: OpenAI aims to avoid lawsuits like the one initiated by The New York Times. Free access to ChatGPT will continue to exist but will include ads. The Plus and Pro subscriptions currently maintain an ad-free experience, although there are no guarantees this will last long-term. Until now, ChatGPT's responses to questions like "which laptop to buy?" were relatively neutral, without explicit commercial interests. With the arrival of ads, brands will be able to pay to position their products at the top, further blurring the line between organic and sponsored responses, much more than in traditional search engines. For media outlets, the revenue sharing presents a dilemma: accepting the deal means legitimizing that their content is consumed within the chat, without users visiting their website; rejecting it means being excluded from an increasingly relevant information channel. This scenario is reminiscent of experiences with Google AMP, Facebook Instant Articles, or Apple News: platforms initially offer attractive conditions, but over time adjust the terms in their favor. The key difference is that while Google still redirects traffic to media, ChatGPT can resolve inquiries without users clicking any links, relegating ads to the only direct monetization avenue. If this model consolidates, traditional web traffic could be severely affected before 2028. OpenAI is expected to detail the ad format, revenue share percentage, and control options for free users in its upcoming keynote. Until then, the reality is clear: free access has a price, and advertising is here to stay. Level of expectation: 3/10. It was a matter of time, and while it makes economic sense, it feels too much like the early days of Google. If you can, subscribe to Plus; if not, be prepared to see "sponsored result" in your conversations with the AI. Source: FayerWayer, que.es