OpenAI moves to build in-house ad tech to rival Meta, Google, Amazon

New Delhi: OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, is laying the groundwork for its own advertising stack as it is getting serious about monetisation at scale. 

A recent job listing stated the company is hiring engineers to develop internal tools for managing ad campaigns, integrating with major platforms, and tracking performance in real time, potentially making ChatGPT into a full-fledged ad platform.

The job posting for a "Growth Paid Marketing Platform Engineer" on the ChatGPT Growth team outlines responsibilities including creating campaign management systems, automating marketing spend, and building experimentation frameworks to optimise objectives. This role emphasises designing foundational marketing technology (MarTech) infrastructure at an early stage, allowing OpenAI to handle its advertising efforts more efficiently and measurably without heavy reliance on external partners.

This development comes amid reports that OpenAI is actively searching for an advertising chief to lead monetisation efforts, with executives like Fidji Simo, the company's CEO of Applications and a former Instacart leader, involved in the hiring process, as per reports. 

The move aligns with OpenAI's broader shift toward revenue generation, including its recent transition to a for-profit public benefit corporation structure valued at least $100 billion, and ongoing negotiations to address financial arrangements with key investor Microsoft.

OpenAI has also made other moves in the advertising space, such as appointing Omnicom Media Group's PHD as its global media agency of record for planning and buying. 

Additionally, the company has experimented with shopping and e-commerce integrations on ChatGPT, laying the groundwork for ad-supported features. 

While OpenAI has not publicly commented on these plans, the company has previously acknowledged exploring advertising options, though it currently lacks on-platform ad capabilities. 

This initiative places OpenAI in rare company; few organisations outside tech giants like Google, Meta, or Amazon build their own ad-buying systems, often opting for third-party tools or agency support, as seen with competitors like Perplexity.