OpenAI wants to be Google. The company would likely reject the idea publicly, but think about the economics of advertising. Google built one of the best businesses in history by putting companies in front of people at the moment they say they need something. People forget how big that business is.

Google generated nearly $295 billion in advertising revenue last year. Search and other properties alone produced $225 billion—about $4.3 billion a week. The Trade Desk, the largest independent demand-side platform, booked $2.9 billion in annual revenue. Google’s search business generates more revenue in an average week than The Trade Desk does in a year. ChatGPT now sits at the same moment of expressed intent that Google has monetized so effectively. Whatever OpenAI calls its ad business, that is the prize.

Consider how you use tech products. You open Instagram to lean back and scroll. You don’t need anything, but maybe something catches your eye. You open Google because you need a new blue sweater. That’s high intent.

Specific searching is the way in which many people use ChatGPT. This is the important part. Nobody types “sweater” into ChatGPT. They say they need something warm for a week in Chicago in January. They add that wool makes them itch and that they’d rather not spend more than $150. Those prompts become a brief. We hand over our wishes, must-haves, constraints, and worries. Then we compare options and decide.

That comparison is where every sweater brand wants to be standing, and OpenAI has started selling the spot.

Source link