AppVolt AI news, read from the source

OpenAI puts ChatGPT ads into Shopify and HubSpot, and starts testing "Sponsored Agents"

US Shopify merchants can run ChatGPT ad campaigns from the Shopify App Store now; other markets follow from September 23. A Sponsored Agent is a labeled conversation a user opts into after clicking an ad — OpenAI says it is separate from ChatGPT's own answers.

September 19, 2026 · 1 min read

An online-store owner checking an order on her phone beside a laptop and packed parcels.
Photo: Unsplash

OpenAI published four changes to ChatGPT Ads on September 16.

First, Sponsored Agents. After a user sees an ad in ChatGPT, they can choose to open what OpenAI calls a "clearly labeled conversation with a business-sponsored agent". They can ask follow-up questions and follow a link to the business's website. OpenAI says this conversation "is distinct from ChatGPT's independent answers and separate from the original conversation". It is being tested with select advertisers in the United States.

Second, campaign management by prompt. Advertisers can create, update and analyze campaigns with natural-language prompts inside ChatGPT through an Ads Manager plugin, and Ads Manager itself now suggests copy and imagery based on the landing page and campaign objective. OpenAI states that advertisers review and edit suggestions before anything is added to a campaign.

Third, an opt-in text customization setting that adapts an advertiser's existing headlines and descriptions to the context of a conversation and translates ad copy into the user's preferred language.

Fourth, two integrations. HubSpot, described as OpenAI's first CRM partner: businesses can connect a ChatGPT Ads account, create ads, track performance and follow up on leads inside HubSpot. Shopify, the first ecommerce partner: US-based merchants have been able to install a ChatGPT Ads app from the Shopify App Store since September 16, with products already connected through Shopify Catalog. OpenAI says the app becomes available internationally, in markets where ChatGPT Ads are available, starting September 23.

Businesses sign up at ads.openai.com.

What this does not mean. It does not mean a business can pay its way into ChatGPT's own answers: OpenAI's post separates the sponsored conversation from ChatGPT's independent answers. The post gives no prices, no list of countries where ChatGPT Ads run, no audience numbers and no performance results. Sponsored Agents are a test with select US advertisers, not a general launch.
Primary source OpenAI · published September 16, 2026
Open it and check the claim yourself. That is the point.

One email a week

A digest of the week's verified stories. No daily flood, no tracking pixels, unsubscribe in one click.

We send the digest and nothing else.