OpenAI tests Sponsored Agents ads in ChatGPT

The launch bundles three things that had been separate: a new ad experience, AI tools for managing campaigns, and distribution through software businesses already use. Sponsored Agents extend the ad beyond a click, letting a shopper ask questions inside ChatGPT — a conversation OpenAI says is distinct from ChatGPT's independent answers and separate from the user's original chat. This is only being tested with select advertisers in the United States, so it remains an experiment rather than a broad rollout.

The HubSpot and Shopify integrations address a different barrier: adopting a new ad channel usually means changing how a business works. HubSpot is OpenAI's first CRM partner and Shopify its first ecommerce partner, letting merchants create and track campaigns where they already manage customers and products. Shopify Catalog is already integrated, so its merchants can start running ads immediately; the app goes international starting September 23.

The real test is whether conversational ads convert curiosity into purchases without blurring the line between an ad and ChatGPT's regular answers. OpenAI's labeling and separation language suggests it sees that boundary as the risk to manage. How well the US pilot performs, and whether advertisers find the AI management tools save enough time to justify the shift, likely shapes how far this format expands.