OpenAI ring-fences ChatGPT ads from minors, sensitive

What happened

OpenAI, which rolled out Ads in India on August 27, 2026, is keeping safeguards that restrict advertising for users below 18, as well as around sensitive topics such as mental health and politics in order to protect vulnerable users and maintain a separation between advertising and sensitive conversations, the company told ETEnterpriseAI. “Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Education remain ad-free.

On early expectations around advertising revenue in India and how significant it could become relative to subscriptions and enterprise offerings, OpenAI said the advertising spend pie is likely to evolve over time to make room for ChatGPT Ads as a new format within omni-channel advertising.

Why it matters

We also do not show Ads to users who identify themselves, or are predicted, to be under 18, and Ads are not eligible alongside sensitive topics such as mental health or politics,” OpenAI spokesperson said. This comes in the backdrop of OpenAI’s phased expansion of ChatGPT Ads across international markets.

The company began testing Ads in the US in February and has since expanded the programme to markets including the UK, Mexico, Brazil, Japan and South Korea. ’The company said Ads are clearly labelled, visually separate and displayed below the response. Advertisers cannot influence ChatGPT’s answers, which continue to be optimised around what is most helpful to the user, it added.

“We have launched clearly labelled sponsored Ads that appear below ChatGPT’s response and remain visually separate from the organic answer. The format can include the advertiser’s name, headline, description, image and landing-page link but not any particular sector is being focused,” the spokesperson added. Also, the company noted that people can dismiss Ads, provide feedback, understand why an ad appeared, manage personalisation and clear advertising data.

The company considers India to be one of the most dynamic markets in the world for how people use ChatGPT to learn, build and discover, and our weekly active users have doubled year-on-year.

What to watch

“In India specifically, the company sees an opportunity across large enterprises, a sophisticated agency ecosystem, and a long tail of small and medium-sized businesses that can access the platform through self-serve tools,” said the spokesperson. OpenAI further clarified that ChatGPT Ads allows businesses of all sizes to introduce themselves at relevant, high-context moments when users’ decisions are beginning to take shape.

“In India, our focus is on working with agency partners for larger advertisers while lowering the barrier for smaller businesses through self-serve tools,” the spokesperson added.