OpenAI began testing 'Sponsored Agents' in ChatGPT on September 16 — a new ad format where tapping an ad opens a clearly labeled conversation with an advertiser-run agent instead of redirecting to a browser tab. Users can ask follow-up questions about a product and click through to the business's site when ready. Wayfair and Angi are among the first participants, alongside Newegg, Best Buy, Lowe's, and VistaPrint.

OpenAI says the agents stay clearly labeled and separate from ChatGPT's own responses and the user's original session. The pilot is limited to select US advertisers, and OpenAI hasn't disclosed how often a sponsored agent surfaces or what triggers one.

Alongside the pilot, OpenAI opened two funnels for advertisers: HubSpot is its first CRM partner — customers can build campaigns, track performance, and chase leads inside HubSpot — and a ChatGPT Ads app in the Shopify App Store lets US merchants push catalogs straight into campaigns, with international availability starting September 23. There's also a natural-language Ads Manager plugin for ChatGPT Work. For regular ChatGPT users, the practical meaning: the ad layer inside the app is getting conversational.