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Guess Its AdsGPT Now?

Recorded: Jan. 23, 2026, 8 a.m.

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Guess Its AdsGPT Now? | AdExchanger

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Home The Big Story Guess Its AdsGPT Now?

PODCAST: The Big Story
Guess Its AdsGPT Now? By Victoria McNally

Friday, January 23rd, 2026 – 1:00 am
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What do Papa Roach and OpenAI have in common? They’re both on their last resort.
During a fireside chat at Harvard University in 2024, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman used that exact phrase – “last resort” – to describe the possibility of introducing ads to ChatGPT.
“I kind of think of ads as a last resort for us for a business model,” he says. “I would do it if it meant that was the only way to get everybody in the world access to great services. But if we can find something that doesn’t do that, I’d prefer that.”

Fast-forward to last week, and OpenAI officially announced (on the Friday before a long holiday weekend, no less!) that it would soon be testing ads within its search chatbot.
Naturally, advertisers, agencies and AI vendors alike are already abuzz with speculation and hot takes. What will the ads look like? How will the back-end buying system work? Is ChatGPT arriving late to the party compared to its competitors?
But as Omnicom Digital CEO Jonathan Nelson points out in this episode of The Big Story, it’s still early days.

“AI is such a big revolution that I think when you look back at it, you will not look at the delta between [Google] AI Overviews, Perplexity and OpenAI as that long of a time difference,” says Nelson.
That speed of change explains why even companies once adamantly opposed to ads, like Netflix once was, sometimes reconsider.
The comparison between OpenAI and Netflix is apt from an agency perspective.
Nelson says agencies will need to help brands decide whether jumping in early on a highly-anticipated ad platform is worth dealing with the inevitable growing pains. Remember Netflix’s exorbitantly expensive CPMs at launch?

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© 2026 Access Intelligence, LLC - All Rights Reserved

This AdExchanger article, “Guess Its AdsGPT Now?” published on January 23rd, 2026, discusses OpenAI’s upcoming testing of advertisements within its ChatGPT chatbot. The piece highlights several key developments and perspectives within the advertising and technology industries. Sam Altman’s statement about ads as a “last resort” to ensure universal access to services is central to the discussion, illustrating OpenAI’s potential motivations for incorporating advertising. Jonathan Nelson, CEO of Omnicom Digital, offers a broader perspective, suggesting that the speed of change in AI—comparing it to the relative shifts between Google’s AI Overviews, Perplexity, and OpenAI—will ultimately diminish any initial concerns held by established players like Netflix, which once vehemently opposed advertising.

The article details a series of related developments. It notes that the timing of OpenAI’s announcement—the Friday before a long holiday weekend—was strategic. Furthermore, it outlines reactions from various industry stakeholders including advertisers, agencies, and technology vendors, revealing the buzz surrounding the forthcoming platform. The discussion incorporates the perspectives of companies like Netflix who have reconsidered advertising as the landscape shifts.

Beyond OpenAI’s strategy, the article provides context through several other industry news items. It notes the rising influence of retail media, exemplified by People Inc.’s rebranding and its continuing challenges with Google search traffic. It details the acquisition of MikMak by SPINS, a CPG data seller, emphasizing the growing importance of commerce media. It also reports on Amazon’s deployment of its Prebid adapter, signaling a push towards enhanced programmatic ecosystem collaboration. A media quality measurement startup known as Gamera raised $1.6 million to protect the Open Web’s Media Quality.

Additionally, the piece includes a roundup of other relevant developments, such as Netflix’s significant ad revenue growth, a jury’s ruling awarding iSpot a $18.3 million payout over data misuse claims against EDO, and an analysis of real versus hype surrounding AI trends at the CES 2026 event. The article concludes by referencing the launch of Pinch AI, a startup targeting e-commerce return scams and highlights the acquisition of MikMak by SPINS to further emphasize the evolving landscape of commerce media. The overall piece provides a snapshot of the industry's anticipation and adjustments surrounding the introduction of advertising to a leading AI conversational platform.