OpenAI’s Nick Turley denies ChatGPT ad tests, says viral screenshots “not real”

OpenAI’s Vice President and Head of ChatGPT Nick Turley has clarified that the company is not testing any advertisements on the AI chatbot, adding that “any screenshots you have seen are either not real or not ads.”

In a post on X, Turley wrote, “I’m seeing lots of confusion about ads rumors in ChatGPT. There are no live tests for ads — any screenshots you’ve seen are either not real or not ads. If we do pursue ads, we’ll take a thoughtful approach. People trust ChatGPT, and anything we do will be designed to respect that.”

All this began when some users reportedly posted screenshots on social media claiming they saw ads in ChatGPT. Media reports noted that these screenshots — shared soon after OpenAI rolled out ChatGPT Suggestions — appeared to show the app displaying prompts that looked like links to apps and shopping sites.

Mark Chen, OpenAI’s Chief Research Officer, also acknowledged the concerns on X, stating that anything resembling commercial content “needs to be handled with care” and that the company had “fallen short,” as per reports.

The episode follows a report from The Information, which said OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had recently declared an internal “code red” to prioritise improving ChatGPT, delaying other initiatives like advertising. While OpenAI has not publicly confirmed plans to introduce ads, the outlet reported that the company had been exploring different ad formats, including shopping-related units, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Earlier reports suggested OpenAI was considering introducing ads within ChatGPT — a significant shift in its business model. One proposal would require users to choose between retaining personalized AI experiences or opting out of memory and losing personalization to avoid targeted ads.

If pursued, the move would mark OpenAI’s first major step toward advertising-driven monetization, beyond subscriptions such as ChatGPT Plus and enterprise offerings.