Why OpenAI is 'running at lightning speed' to build an ad business

April 21, 2026 For launching an ads business only two months ago, OpenAI has had a lot of development. In the last month: the platform inked deals with ad tech partners like Criteo and Smartly, hired former Meta exec Dave Dugan to run its ad business, launched a self-serve manager in testing, introduced pixels to track ad conversion — and now, its ads are getting cheaper. Having a difficult time keeping up? Same. Catch up on all of the news by listening to our Digiday reporting team break down the headlines. TOP STORY AI Revenue Generation Why OpenAI is 'running at lightning speed' to build an ad business The AI ad wars have officially begun, and OpenAI is staffing up and dropping rates to lure brands away from the likes of Meta and Google. Advertisement OTHER THINGS TO KNOW The agentic era is moving quickly — from concept to live campaigns in record time. Publishers who are agent-ready gain a competitive edge with more RFPs, more direct business wins and higher CPMs. Partner insights from Optable. As AI increases the bar for speed and responsiveness, the best people spend more time coordinating than doing the work only humans can do. Tools meant to simplify can end up costing agencies time, confidence and eventually, accounts. Partner insights from Pathlabs. AI gives marketers speed. Landing pages that used to take weeks to build now take minutes. But people with disabilities stop buying from brands whose AI-built sites make it impossible to complete a purchase. Partner insights from AudioEye. MARKETING Member exclusive Digiday+ Research: Marketing workflows benefit from AI, but trust is still a barrier to adoption Research shows that while marketers see AI’s benefits, trust and complexity issues are barriers to widespread adoption. The Creator Economy David’s Bridal invests in its creator strategy as part of its post-bankruptcy comeback David’s Bridal is investing more heavily in creators as part of a broader push to modernize the business. PARTNER INSIGHTS FROM OPENX Why marketing is now the operating system for growth The strategies required to persuade people and to inform machines are fundamentally different, but they must be coordinated and owned by the same function. Now, marketing is the layer that translates business value into signals both humans and AI systems can interpret. ICYMI: OPENAI NEWS Marketing on Platforms ‘Everything is coming down’: ChatGPT ads are getting cheaper While the pilot CPM started out at $60, advertisers are now seeing that price drop to as low as $25, just nine weeks into the test. PARTNER INSIGHTS FROM KEEN DECISION SYSTEMS Purposeful investment across the full funnel is driving incrementality High-growth brands view marketing as a value generator rather than a cost center, resulting in compounding returns over time. Research from McKinsey shows that a full-funnel strategy generates 15%–20% higher marketing ROI on average. Advertisement Marketing on Platforms OpenAI builds tool to track whether ChatGPT ads convert The AI platform is selectively enabling its pixel for some advertisers in the pilot as it continues to test and iterate its capability. Marketing on Platforms A closer look at OpenAI’s ads manager – and how much work it still needs OpenAI’s ads manager is being tested. Here’s what it can (and can’t) do yet. PARTNER INSIGHTS FROM CIRCANA How purchase data is redefining TV ad performance With the TV market increasingly splintered, age brackets and other demographics are only one piece of the puzzle. Past purchases are the strongest predictor of future buying behavior — regardless of age, gender or viewing preferences. Member exclusive Digiday+ Research: Marketing workflows benefit from AI, but trust is still a barrier to adoption Research shows that while marketers see AI’s benefits, trust and complexity issues are barriers to widespread adoption. FROM DIGIDAY+ Member exclusive Ad Tech Briefing: The days of bloat are over, as efficiency drives ad tech's C-suite exodus Faced with increasing competition from LLMs, ad tech players have to better demonstrate their value-add.  Written by Jim Cooper and Sara Jerde Were you forwarded this email? Sign up to get it daily. Advertise | Digiday+ | Events | Awards Update your email | Unsubscribe | Privacy policy