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OpenAI opened up ChatGPT for advertisers in India, its second-largest market by user base. Sponsored results began appearing to eligible users on August 27, and the self-serve Ads Manager followed on September 4.
Any business, from a small local brand to a large agency, can now sign up and run a campaign without going through a managed account or waiting period. The minimum daily budget to get started is Rs. 725, which OpenAI kept low to encourage more advertisers to test the platform early.
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Ads on ChatGPT appear below relevant answers in a conversation, clearly labelled as sponsored and visually separated from the AI's actual response. OpenAI says the ads do not influence what ChatGPT tells users, and advertisers never get access to chat history or personal conversations, only aggregate performance numbers.
More than 50 brands, backed by agencies like WPP and Omnicom, were among the first to run campaigns in India. Paid subscription tiers such as Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Education remain completely ad-free, so sponsored content only shows up for people on the Free and Go plans.
The pricing itself runs through an auction system rather than a fixed rate. OpenAI uses what it calls a relevance-weighted, second-price auction, where the winning bid depends on both cost and how well the ad fits the ongoing conversation.
Advertisers can choose between CPM, CPC, or conversion-focused campaign goals, and reporting includes metrics like impressions, clicks, spend and average cost per click.
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Industry watchers caution that Rs. 725 a day is simply the technical floor to launch a campaign, not what it actually costs to see results. Over a 30-day month, that minimum works out to roughly Rs. 21,750, which may not be enough to generate meaningful clicks or conversions for most brands.
The real cost depends on factors like competition from other advertisers, ad relevance, industry category, and the value of each customer a business is trying to acquire.
Since ChatGPT ads are still new in India, marketers are advising businesses to treat early campaigns as tests and judge them by conversion quality, rather than comparing them directly against established platforms like Meta or Google right away.
