The Future of AEO - ChatGPT Ads
Written & Published On The 24/4/25 By Kimberley Biggam – SEO Executive
With over 600 million monthly users, ChatGPT & Answer Engine Platforms are changing the way businesses connect with Consumers. AEO in itself is still rising as a new form of innovative marketing that pushes organic traffic to websites through answer engine content. This is fed through giving users clear, concise answer-driven content through ChatGPT search, Google answer boxes, featured snippets & AI overviews.
ChatGPT has become an everyday staple in everyone’s lives and is now becoming vital to businesses in an ever-growing digital market space. With an estimated 37 million searches per day, AEO is the sister to SEO. Big things are in discussion in the AEO & AI marketing space, with talks of ChatGPT introducing ChatGPT search ads as soon as 2026.
When Are ChatGPT Search Ads Coming?
As ChatGPT Search soars, OpenAI is aiming to hit 1 billion users by the end of 2025. Chat GPT Ads are in discussion, although there is no exact date confirmation of ChatGPT search ads, it is highly promising and a probable next step for OpenAI. Both the ChatGPT CEO & CFO have displayed interest in ChatGPT search ads. Open AI has user experience and trust at its core, so this would be at the center focus of moving towards search ads within ChatGPT.
Researchers have forecasted that there is significant revenue potential from free user monetization starting in 2026. This is just a starting estimation, there is clear potential & expectations for this to grow substantially, it is estimated 25 billion by 2029 with a total projection of $125 billion.
OpenAI is shifting from a non-profit to a for-profit business, and the team behind ChatGPT has been keen to explore ways to boost revenue. They are currently looking to monetize the platform’s large user base. Despite no immediate plans to implement Search Ads, this could change as the company researches to find out if Search Ads will promise their investors a 300% rise in its revenue by 2025.
Hear What OpenAI's CEO is Saying About ChatGPT Ads
In the past, Open AI’s CEO, Sam Altman, has expressed his lack of support for Ads in general as he had concerns around the authenticity of & manipulative nature of ads. Sam Altman has expressed curiosity in free user monetization but with apprehension. The profit expectations are there but Open AIs values align with putting users at the forefront alongside building trust.
In a podcast interview, Sam Altman has expressed:
“I kind of hate ads just as an aesthetic choice. I think ads needed to happen on the internet for a bunch of reasons, to get it going, but it’s a momentary industry.”
“I’m sure there’s an ad unit that makes sense for LLMs, and I’m sure there’s a way to participate in the transaction stream in an unbiased way that is okay to do, but it’s also easy to think about the dystopic visions of the future where you ask ChatGPT something and it says, ‘Oh, you should think about buying this product,’ or, ‘You should think about going here for your vacation,’ or whatever.”
Understanding the Potential of ChatGPT Search Ads
So, what does all of this mean for businesses? well as the digital marketing industry moves with the times & AI. It is important to prepare for the future, especially to stand out against your competitors. AEO alone has significant potential, which we can already see the effects of on businesses. The introduction of ChatGPT search ads would further enhance AEO, allowing businesses to optimize for answer engines while being complemented with search ads to really push conversion and web traffic.
The whole point of answer engines is to provide users a seamless, easy, and quick experience, giving them the resources they need. This is a key market for businesses looking to establish themselves as leaders in their industry & skyrocket web traffic. ChatGPT Search Ads presents multiple opportunities for revenue generation & enhances user experience. It also presents challenges in building trust with users & influence of privacy concerns.
We don’t know when ChatGPT ads will come, but AEO is in its upcoming prime, and now is the time to act and transform your business’s online presence by optimizing for AEO. Learn more about AEO and what it can do for your business over at Aeoagency.co.uk .
Digital Landscope is proud to announce that we are branching into AEO services with our Answer Engine agency. Our team has vast knowledge and experience with ChatGPT & optimising websites with AEO. As experts in SEO & AEO, our agency services implement both across businesses’ websites, optimising metrics to maximise organic traffic, keywords & let your company conversion soar.
Keen to find out more? Contact us to learn more from one of our experts, we offer free SEO & AEO discoveries to let you gain insights on the performance of your website and learn about its potential.
