Most of the guides published about ChatGPT Ads since its announcement share the same flaw: they describe a channel that is still theoretical, lacking data, and offering generic advice («tailor your content to conversational style») that could apply to any platform. As of August 31, 2026, it is no longer a theoretical channel. The self-service Ads Manager is available in France, with no minimum budget, and several ChatGPT Ads Agencies French companies already have active campaigns.
A ChatGPT Ads ad appears as a visually distinct sponsored insert positioned below the response generated by the model, never mixed in with it. The format documented by OpenAI includes the advertiser’s name, a favicon, a title, a description, an image, and a link to your landing page. According to the sources consulted, there are three variations: the sponsored text response (the most common), a carousel format for product shopping, and an image format with a call-to-action button.
Regarding text length, two sources provide different figures, and this is a point worth noting rather than glossing over: the documented format reportedly limits certain fields to 16 characters for the title and 32 for the description, whereas an Adthena analysis of more than 40,000 daily ad placements found that high-performing headlines averaged about 30 characters (5 words) and ad copy averaged 116 characters (19 words). The most likely explanation is that these two figures do not measure the same thing: a technical field limit on one hand, and an actual average length observed in ads that convert on the other—potentially across different formats. When in doubt, focus on the actionable insight: on ChatGPT Ads, functional clarity trumps creativity. The winning structure identified by Adthena follows a simple «Brand: Benefit» model: two short sentences (a point of evidence followed by an offer), concrete numbers, and an explicit call to action («Compare,» «Buy Now»), and a calm rather than exclamatory tone. This is no coincidence: the ad appears within a conversation, not on a results page, where an overly salesy tone would seem out of place.
ChatGPT Ads targeting combines two mechanisms. First, the context and intent of the current conversation: the ad is selected based on what the user is asking ChatGPT, not on a predefined profile. On the other hand, it uses traditional personalization signals, as well as «context hints»—indications provided by the advertiser to help the system understand in which conversational contexts their offer is relevant. It is this second point that most guides overlook due to a lack of available technical details: in practical terms, this means that setting up a ChatGPT Ads campaign is less like selecting keywords on Google Ads and more like defining usage scenarios—the types of questions, needs, and phrasing in which your offer fits.
One point of caution highlighted by several practitioners (including the team at abmatic.ai, which specializes in OpenAI’s advertising policy): formulating targeting criteria that refer to identified «individuals» triggers an automatic rejection on privacy grounds. The recommended rephrasing: think in terms of companies rather than individuals—for example, «companies that visit your site» rather than «people who viewed a particular page.».
The ChatGPT Ads bidding model is a relevance-weighted second-price auction—a mechanism similar to that of Google Ads. Two campaign objectives are available: Reach, billed on a CPM basis, and Clicks, billed on a CPC basis, with an ongoing shift toward oCPC (conversion-optimized cost per click). OpenAI recommends a starting CPC of between $3 and $5.
Given the figures observed, caution is warranted. In the United States, where the pilot program began in February 2026, the CPM started at around $60 before falling to between $15 and $45 in April, as inventory and competition in the auctions increased. More recently, CPMs ranging from $25 to just over $50 have been reported, with significant variation by country and sector. No specific figures for CTR, CPA, or ROAS are currently publicly available for France, and this is precisely the kind of nuance that several previously published guides omit, implicitly suggesting that U.S. benchmarks apply directly to the French market. This is not the case: the French pilot program has been in existence for less than two weeks at the time of this guide’s writing.
The real structural change, however, has been confirmed: there is no longer a minimum budget. The entry threshold, set at $200,000 when the U.S. pilot program launched, was lowered to $50,000 in the spring of 2026 and then eliminated entirely during the’Launch of the European self-service platform in late August. Any company can now test this channel with a budget of its choosing.
This is the topic that’s most often glossed over elsewhere, even though it directly determines whether your campaign will be accepted. OpenAI’s advertising policy distinguishes between two levels.
The following are strictly prohibited: adult content or dating sites, alcohol and tobacco, counterfeit goods, gambling, graphic sexual or violent content, recreational drugs (including cannabis), political or election-related content, job or housing ads targeting specific individuals, scams and fraudulent content, as well as the commercial exploitation of sensitive events.
The following are subject to restrictions, with a case-by-case review, and are currently limited to the U.S. market: financial services (credit cards, loans, insurance, investments—proof of licensure is required), healthcare (medical devices, dental care, health insurance; regulatory verification required), and legal services (proof of practice in the relevant jurisdiction).
The most important thing to know before launching a campaign—and something that appears in virtually none of the guides consulted while writing this article—is that approval of your advertiser account does not mean approval of an entire category of ads. Every ad, every image, every claim, and every landing page is reviewed individually. A campaign can therefore be partially approved and partially rejected without the account being rejected entirely. The review process combines automated and human moderation; the actual reason for rejection appears in a details field, not in the summary status displayed by default, so be sure to check it rather than stopping at the verdict.
Two measurement tools are available: the OpenAI Pixel (JavaScript), which captures conversion events on the client side, and the Conversions API, which transmits those same events on the server side—a more reliable method, particularly when dealing with tracker blockers. Native reporting remains basic at this stage: impressions, clicks, spend, average CTR, average CPC, average CPM, and conversions are available at the ad group level, with no visibility into the exact conversion phrases that triggered the ad display. UTM tracking therefore remains essential for linking this data to your existing business metrics rather than relying solely on the platform’s native metrics.
A technical prerequisite that’s all too often pushed to the bottom of the list, even though it should be the first thing you check: Your robots.txt file must explicitly allow two OpenAI bots, OAI-AdsBot and OAI-SearchBot. Without this authorization, your landing pages and product catalog simply cannot be utilized by the advertising system; a campaign may be configured correctly on paper but never take off for this reason alone.
There are currently three ways to sign up. The first is direct, self-service registration at ads.openai.com. This option has been available to all companies in France since August 31, 2026, with no minimum budget required, subject to identity verification and compliance with eligible categories.
The second option involves the OpenAI Ads Solutions team, through a business contact form (name, company, industry, advertising budget, target countries). This route is better suited for larger budgets or situations requiring dedicated support.
The third involves a partner. OpenAI has designated technology partners (Adobe, Criteo, Kargo, Pacvue, StackAdapt) for integration and programmatic management, as well as international agency partners (Dentsu, Omnicom, Publicis, WPP) for media support.
Several errors appear frequently enough in the feedback that has already been published to warrant being listed explicitly rather than buried in general advice:
Reuse visuals designed for traditional displays without adapting them to the format and conversational tone of the ad placement.
Neglecting the quality and freshness of the product feed for e-commerce campaigns—a poorly structured or outdated feed directly undermines the relevance of the ads displayed.
Always redirect users to the homepage rather than to a specific landing page, in line with the conversational intent that triggered the ad.
Failing to allow OAI-AdsBot and OAI-SearchBot in the robots.txt file, which simply prevents the advertising system from functioning properly on the site.
Targeting individual users rather than companies, which triggers a rejection on privacy grounds.
Making unsubstantiated, disparaging comparisons with competitors, which are systematically rejected in peer-reviewed journals.
Start directly with scaling rather than with controlled testing—an OpenAI representative quoted by the Blog du Modérateur specifically emphasizes this learning phase before any scaling takes place.
The channel moved from announcement to execution faster than expected. Cosmo5 is running campaigns for Carrefour, Bouygues Télécom, and Cultura, with about 15 brands planned in total. Havas Market launched a campaign for EDF on August 26, just two days after the platform opened to French users. Gamned! (part of the Biggie Group) is running six test campaigns simultaneously.
This is a sign of actual traction, which should be distinguished from proof of performance. None of these agencies has, at this stage, reported any verifiable numerical results.
The channel moved from announcement to execution faster than expected. Cosmo5 is running campaigns for Carrefour, Bouygues Télécom, and Cultura, with about 15 brands planned in total. Havas Market launched a campaign for EDF on August 26, just two days after the platform opened to French users. Gamned! (Biggie Group) is running six test campaigns simultaneously. This is a sign of real traction, though it should not be confused with proof of performance: none of these agencies has, at this stage, reported verifiable numerical results.
No. The $200,000 threshold set when the U.S. pilot program was launched was lowered to $50,000 and then eliminated entirely when the European self-service platform launched on August 31, 2026.
A relevance-weighted second-price auction, with two available objectives: Reach (billed on a CPM basis) and Clicks (billed on a CPC basis, with a recommended starting CPC between $3 and $5), and an ongoing transition to oCPC.
First and foremost: make sure your robots.txt file allows OAI-AdsBot and OAI-SearchBot, that your product feed is up to date if you run an e-commerce site, and that the OpenAI Pixel and the Conversions API are properly integrated into your existing tracking setup.
Because approval of an advertiser account does not automatically mean that all of its ads will be approved: each ad is reviewed individually. Check the "Reason for Rejection" field rather than just the summary status.
Not necessarily. The French campaign is too new to have its own benchmark. The U.S. figures (CPM ranging from $15 to $60 depending on the period, and initial CPC ranging from $3 to $5) provide a general idea of the scale, but they are not a reliable benchmark for your industry in France.
We document what we know for certain, we flag what remains uncertain, and we avoid applying U.S. benchmarks to France without specifying so. Self-service is available with no budget restrictions; the issue is no longer access, but preparation: structuring your content and product feed, ensuring your creatives comply with advertising policies, tracking properly connected before spending a single euro. This is where we support companies that are serious about making this commitment. Contact us!