OpenAI adds product-feed ads to ChatGPT

OpenAI has added merchant-facing product-feed tools to ChatGPT’s shopping system, according to developer documentation published this week. The company’s Agentic Commerce pages describe a structured feed that lets approved partners send catalog data, prices, availability and seller details for use in “discovery and checkout” inside ChatGPT. OpenAI also said in a separate May 7 post that it is testing ads in ChatGPT, with the pilot limited to logged-in adult users on the Free and Go tiers in the United States. The new materials show how ChatGPT’s shopping product is moving beyond simple outbound links. OpenAI said richer shopping experiences began rolling out to Free, Go, Plus and Pro users in the week of March 24, adding visual browsing, side-by-side comparisons and more current product information. The commerce documentation now gives merchants a formal route to plug inventory into that system. (developers.openai.com) ### What exactly did OpenAI add for merchants? OpenAI’s developer site says merchants can “start your ACP integration by sharing a structured product feed” with ChatGPT. The company said those feeds give ChatGPT the data it needs to index products, understand attributes and present accurate product information in shopping experiences. Feed data can include titles, descriptions, images, price and availability, according to the onboarding guide. (openai.com) The product-feed specification says the system is designed to surface accurate, up-to-date catalog data for “discovery and checkout” in ChatGPT. OpenAI said merchants can deliver feeds by SFTP, file upload or hosted URL, and should keep inventory and price updates fresh to maintain accurate discovery. ### Does this mean ChatGPT shopping results are now ads? OpenAI’s help center says no. In a shopping explainer updated about 20 days ago, the company said product results shown for shopping-intent queries “are not ads” and are not influenced by OpenAI partnerships. (developers.openai.com) The same page says ads are separate from product results. OpenAI’s ads post draws the same line. (developers.openai.com) The company said ads “do not influence the answers ChatGPT gives you,” and that conversations remain private from advertisers. The ad test began on February 9 in the United States for logged-in adult users on Free and Go plans, while Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Education tiers do not have ads, according to the post. ### How does the shopping system decide what to show? (help.openai.com) OpenAI’s help page says ChatGPT selects product results based on user intent and context. The company said the system can use structured metadata from first-party and third-party providers, including price and product descriptions, along with other third-party content and the model’s own response generation process. (openai.com) The March 24 product announcement said ChatGPT can show products side by side with price, reviews and features, and that OpenAI had improved speed, relevance and product coverage. OpenAI said those shopping upgrades were rolling out to all ChatGPT Free, Go, Plus and Pro users that week. ### Who can plug products into the system now? OpenAI’s onboarding guide says product-feed onboarding is “currently available to approved partners.” The company directs interested merchants to apply for access and recommends either daily full-feed uploads with intraday API updates or API-only updates for smaller catalogs. (help.openai.com) Promotions data, OpenAI said, can only be provided through the API. (openai.com) OpenAI also set limits on what can be sold. The commerce guide says prohibited categories include adult content, alcohol, nicotine, gambling, weapons, prescription-only medicines, unlicensed financial products and other restricted or deceptive goods. OpenAI said it may remove products or ban sellers from being surfaced in ChatGPT if policies are violated. ### What happens next in OpenAI’s commerce and ads rollout? (developers.openai.com) OpenAI said on May 7 that it plans in coming weeks to expand the ads pilot to the United Kingdom, Mexico, Brazil, Japan and South Korea. Businesses interested in advertising in those markets can sign up for updates through OpenAI’s advertisers page, the company said. OpenAI’s commerce pages point merchants to the Agentic Commerce Protocol documentation, feed specifications and application process for approved partners. (developers.openai.com) Those materials, along with the March 24 shopping rollout and the current help-center guidance on product selection, are the next public checkpoints for companies that want products surfaced inside ChatGPT. (openai.com 1) (openai.com 2)