OpenAI's Ad Offering Is a Last Resort, and It Still Won't Save the Company(adweek.com)
adweek.com
OpenAI's Ad Offering Is a Last Resort, and It Still Won't Save the Company
https://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/openais-ad-offering-is-a-last-resort-and-it-still-wont-save-the-company/
They grew 3x in 2024 and then 4x in 2025 to $20b ARR. If they grow 4x again in 2026, they're at $80b.
The "astounding" $30b is an afterthought. They're surely going to hit it. I think they can hit it even if they don't monetize a single free user. But they are already starting to now with ads.
Anyways, let's just ignore revenue for a second.
OpenAI has:
* ~1 billion users
* "Ask ChatGPT" is the same as "google it" for the masses
* Best models according to ARC AGI (it's not very close)
* $40b fresh in the bank from Softbank
* Up to $100b investment from Nvidia
* An IPO that will most likely be the most anticipated ever. I'm betting they will IPO at well over $1 trillion and raise a cool $100b.
* Ability to raise debt
* Ability to raise more VC money if they want
These OpenAI doomer articles are quite tiring. It's easy to get engagement by being negative.