OpenAI's ad business shows blistering growth, hits $1 billion annualized revenue run rate

OpenAI’s ChatGPT advertising business has reached a $1 billion annualized revenue run rate less than 200 days after launching, giving the company another rapidly growing revenue stream alongside subscriptions, enterprise services and API usage. Ads are now available in more than 40 countries, with self-service advertising expanding into Europe, India, the Middle East and North Africa. The bigger takeaway for investors is the speed of monetization. OpenAI has roughly 1 billion weekly active users, and ads are currently shown primarily to free and lower-priced Go users. The company is targeting $2.5 billion in advertising revenue for 2026 and sees significant room to expand formats, advertisers and international markets. For the broader market, this is another sign that AI platforms can become major advertising businesses and potentially compete with the traditional dominance of Google and Meta. It also gives OpenAI a potentially valuable recurring revenue stream ahead of its expected IPO.