ChatGPT starts showing ads: user spots SSL certificate promotion in free tier
Greedy-Permission-36 · reddit · 2026-10-26
A Reddit user spotted the first ads in ChatGPT: a "This might also interest you" section below an answer promoting ManageEngine's SSL/TLS certificate tool, clearly labeled as an ad.
The poster jokes that after years of burning compute answering questions, OpenAI has finally found a way to monetize his attention — and wonders if "sponsored answers" are next. He acknowledges one ad won't cover a heavy user's inference cost, but sees the free AI experience slowly becoming another ad slot.
Related event: ChatGPT Free Users Spot Ads and Unsolicited Heart Emoji in Chats(2 posts)→
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