Amazon Plugs Its Advertisers Into ChatGPT as the AI Ad War Goes Mainstream
Amazon has begun letting its advertisers buy placements inside ChatGPT through its own demand-side platform, pushing 'ads inside the chatbot' from theory into the mainstream just as ChatGPT's ad business hits a $1bn run rate.
The Deal
Amazon Ads has launched a US pilot that lets advertisers buy ChatGPT ad placements via Amazon DSP, through a new arrangement with OpenAI. Travel brand Delta Vacations is among the first testing the surface, drawn by the promise of more personalised trip planning.
The scale on both sides is significant. ChatGPT's advertising has reportedly reached around a $1bn annualised run rate, while Amazon's ad business neared $70bn last year. The pilot is US-only at launch and runs on familiar CPC and CPM pricing.
Why It Matters
This is the moment advertising inside an AI assistant stops being a slide in a trends deck. The number-three ad platform in the US just routed its demand into OpenAI's inventory, giving tens of thousands of advertisers a path into ChatGPT without building anything new.
It also reshapes the competitive map. If the walled gardens start plugging into each other's AI surfaces, the question for marketers is less 'which platform' and more 'which assistant is my customer using, and am I present in its answers?'
Marketing Minute's Take
We would not rush the whole budget in, but we would absolutely run a structured test. Early conversational-ad inventory tends to be cheaper and less crowded, and the learning compounds: understanding how these placements convert now is cheaper than learning it once every competitor is bidding.
The deeper shift is that discovery is fragmenting across assistants. Brands should be tracking how they appear in AI-generated answers, feeding assistants clean structured product data, and treating 'being the recommendation' as a channel in its own right alongside paid placements.
Quick FAQ
What is Amazon's ChatGPT ads pilot?
Amazon Ads has launched a US pilot letting advertisers buy ChatGPT placements through Amazon DSP via a deal with OpenAI, using CPC and CPM pricing. Delta Vacations is an early tester.
How big is ChatGPT's ad business?
ChatGPT's advertising has reportedly reached roughly a $1bn annualised run rate, while Amazon's overall ad business neared $70bn last year.
Should brands advertise inside AI chatbots yet?
A structured test makes sense: early conversational inventory is cheaper and less crowded, and learning how it converts now beats scrambling once competitors pile in.
The chatbot ad has stopped being a hypothetical. When Amazon routes its demand into ChatGPT, that is an infrastructure signal, not an experiment. Run a real test now - the cost of learning how AI ads convert only goes up from here. - Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing
Advertising inside AI assistants just went mainstream - run a structured test now, while conversational inventory is still cheap and uncrowded.
Do you know how your brand currently shows up when a customer asks an AI assistant for a recommendation?
If you would like to know more about this topic, please contact us on danieln@merxmarketing.co.uk
Sources: Marketing Dive, CNBC, Search Engine Land.
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Written by Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing Ltd and Marketing Minute
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