Sam Altman, who once insisted that "advertising is the last resort of a business model," eventually bowed to reality. On February 13, 2026, according to Gelonghui, OpenAI has officially launched an advertising business in its flagship product ChatGPT this week.

Past Promises vs. Present Reality:

Two years ago, during a speech at Harvard University, Altman clearly stated that he strongly disliked inserting paid advertisements into chatbots, believing it would undermine users' trust in the product. However, with the sharp increase in AI computing costs, this "sentiment" ultimately couldn't outweigh the hundreds of billions of dollars in bills.

A $1 Billion "Money-Guzzling" Beast:

The reason behind OpenAI's urgent changes is huge financial pressure:

Current Revenue: Last year, the company achieved revenue of about $13 billion, which is already astronomical for a startup.

Spending Black Hole: To build and deploy more powerful AI technology, OpenAI is expected to invest approximately $100 billion over the next four years to purchase basic computing power.

Urgent Need to Increase Revenue: Faced with a situation where income is less than expenditure, the company is in a survival race to achieve balance between income and expenses, and "selling ads" has become the most direct way to generate revenue.

Controversy and Challenges:

Inserting advertisements into the conversation flow is seen as a double-edged sword. How to balance commercialization with user experience? How to maintain the objectivity of answers while recommending advertisements? These are major obstacles that OpenAI must face on its path to achieving a $1 billion growth trajectory.