In January 2026, OpenAI announced they would be testing ads on their flagship ChatGPT large language model (LLM). The company suggests that in future users will have to subscribe to a paid plan for ad-free access. In a statement, OpenAI said:
The best ads are useful, entertaining, and help people discover new products and services. Given what AI can do, we’re excited to develop new experiences over time that people find more helpful and relevant than any other ad.
During the trial, ads will be ‘planted’ at the bottom of answers, clearly demarcated and separated from the model’s text:
Image credit: OpenAI
The launch of ChatGPT Atlas and Google AI Mode will further upend airline business models, with these agents capable of suggesting and booking flights independently. Integrating ads represents another curveball for airlines’ digital strategy. But will the 800 million-plus ChatGPT trust ads linked to the model? And does this represent a significant opportunity for aviation?
Users trust ChatGPT recommendations
According to AdWeek, placing a beta ad with OpenAI during the trial will cost at least US$200,000 — no small sum. Sam Altman, OpenAI CEO, was initially hesitant to integrate ads into ChatGPT, claiming that it would compromise the trust built between user and model. However, he now acknowledges that they are necessary to cover the expense of running huge LLM that mostly depends on free users. OpenAI’s losses are estimated to be as great as as US$1.4 trillion over the next eight years.
OpenAI insist that advertising will have no impact on the responses ChatGPT provides. Instead, it seems the model will pair ads to responses based on keywords. For airlines, searches such as ‘best things to do in Antalya’ or ‘cheapest time to visit Japan’ could provide an easy space to insert their brand.
In a 2025 global study by KPMG, 65% of respondents said that they trusted the technical ability of AI systems to provide accurate, reliable outputs. Another survey by Express Legal Funding found that 34% of people trust ChatGPT more than a human expert in at least one area. Airlines positioning themselves alongside AI could therefore boost their public perception, presenting them as reliable industry leaders. At the very least, ads will offer significant brand visibility through OpenAI’s hundreds of millions of users.
Organic search appearances will have greater impact
However, OpenAI’s insistence that ads will not be integrated with the model’s responses could limit any marketing done through this channel. Ads of this kind are akin to large banners on news sites, which typically attract a click-through rate (CTR) of around 0.1%. Meanwhile, Google Ads are embedded into the search’s functionality, with the result that over 63% of people have clicked on a Google ad. Because of how seamlessly they are incorporated into Google’s interface, many users don’t even realise they are being led to sponsored content.
While ads could represent a sizable brand opportunity, due to that relationship of trust airlines’ main goal should be to appear in ChatGPT’s responses themselves. Users take these recommendations as authoritative. The real marketing race will be to see which airlines can optimise themselves for AI output.
But how this can be done remains a mystery. ChatGPT scrapes huge quantities of data and ultimately provides a response based on the ‘calculated probability’ of what the user wants to know. The model is more likely to mention an airline if it has a good public reputation, accredited reviews, and is cited frequently in other sources, such as the news or online forums.
OpenAI remain vague about exactly how this works and what data feeds ChatGPT. As airlines struggle to get to grips with the intricacies of AI search, ads could fill the stopgap and ensure visibility on this important platform, which is set to surpass 1 billion users this year. But organic recommendations from artificial intelligence will likely drive far greater impact.
Of course, it’s not in OpenAI’s interest to tell airlines how they can achieve this, ultimately making advertising a very lucrative opportunity for them. But for airlines? Time will tell.
Join us at World Aviation Festival 2026 to discuss how LLMs are impacting aviation business models.
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