Ads Come To ChatGPT Why Are We Mad?

Last year on the podcast, I claimed that 2025 would be the golden age of AI. Venture capital was flowing freely, and new chatbots and LLM wrappers around ChatGPT were everywhere. In 2025, we could generate hyper realistic images and videos for free, enjoy free chats with very generous rate limits (except for Claude, which remains one of the most censored and frustrating chatbots). Galaxy AI was free and continuously adding new features. But how were these companies making money? Most people didn’t pay for ChatGPT or Grok—you could literally access them without signing in and get free article editing, free search, and free content generation. The reality is, running AI at this scale costs money, and companies cannot keep funding AI as a money pit indefinitely.

For some reason, AI is not widely seen as a net positive. People feel uneasy and unsettled about it, despite the fact that this is undoubtedly the technological achievement of the decade—perhaps even the century. As I have mentioned multiple times, the internet is dying. I can’t find new podcasts or discover the things I truly want to know. Nothing works offline anymore. The high-tech gadgets we see in movies and the cool software we imagine don’t really exist. AI is the ultimate breakthrough, the greatest software ever created. I believe we will see multiple AI operating systems in the 2030s and 2040s, much like how browsers became the dominant platforms in the 2010s.

Those who dislike AI certainly won’t pay for it, and even those who appreciate AI may hesitate to pay directly. As a strong supporter, I’m not going to pay for something that’s free—especially as technology advances, allowing us to run AI models locally on powerful Android phones. This means AI will likely be integrated into services we already pay for, like cell service, streaming platforms, Office 365, and more. Major companies like Google and Microsoft will dominate because they have deep pockets, along with OpenAI as the pioneer.

However, OpenAI isn’t yet profitable, so they face two choices: sell to a larger company or introduce advertisements into their product. For now, OpenAI has chosen the latter, which makes sense. The internet itself is largely ad-supported—this has been the case for years, and it’s a sustainable business model seen in press and TV for decades. Honestly, I don’t understand the backlash. Having superintelligence in your pocket, with the added benefit of seeing products you might want to buy, all for free, is incredible. Ten years ago, if someone said you had a machine that could replace almost every computer tool you owned, people would be thrilled, they would offer up their newborn child for this kind of tech. Now, it’s met with resistance because people dislike both ads and AI.

The ball is now in Google’s and Microsoft’s courts. What will they do? Google could spend millions and still turn a profit—they’re that powerful. Shareholders will always expect returns. The golden age of AI is upon us, and now it’s time to make it profitable. God bless and Tech Talk To You Later!!!