The Trade Desk (TTD) Stock Soars on OpenAI ChatGPT Advertising Discussions

Key Highlights

Table of Contents

OpenAI engaged in preliminary discussions with The Trade Desk (TTD) regarding advertising sales on ChatGPT
TTD stock climbed 9.3% during after-hours trading on the news; AppLovin (APP) also rose over 1%
ChatGPT is currently testing advertisements with adult users on Free and Go tiers who are logged in
OpenAI reported annualized revenue of $25B by late February, marking a 17% increase from $21.4B at year’s close
The AI company secured $110B in its most recent funding round, with major investments from Amazon, Nvidia, and SoftBank

Shares of The Trade Desk (TTD) experienced a significant 9.3% surge in after-hours trading Wednesday following a report from The Information revealing that OpenAI had engaged in preliminary conversations with the advertising technology company about monetizing ChatGPT through advertisements.

The Information says OpenAI held early talks with The Trade Desk $TTD about selling ads, including automating and scaling ChatGPT ad sales.

The report says OpenAI projects advertising could help double consumer ChatGPT revenue to $17B this year. pic.twitter.com/ld608Wquwm

— Wall St Engine (@wallstengine) March 4, 2026

According to sources with knowledge of the situation cited in the report, these discussions remain in their early phases.

OpenAI has recently launched an advertising pilot program within ChatGPT for users in the United States. This initial test targets adult users who maintain active accounts on the Free and Go subscription levels.

Rather than building its advertising infrastructure entirely internally, the company seems to be pursuing a partnership-based strategy.

In addition to The Trade Desk, OpenAI has reportedly initiated discussions with multiple brands, media buying agencies, and various ad technology companies as it explores this new advertising initiative.

Competitor AppLovin (APP), another player in the ad tech space, also saw modest gains exceeding 1% on the announcement.

OpenAI Reports Strong Revenue Growth

A separate report indicates that OpenAI achieved an annualized revenue milestone of $25 billion by the conclusion of February. This represents a 17% climb from the $21.4 billion figure the company reported at the close of the previous year.

Looking ahead, the company has outlined ambitious projections targeting total revenue exceeding $280 billion by 2030, with anticipated balanced contributions from both consumer-facing products and enterprise solutions.

Within the enterprise market, OpenAI contends with rivals including Anthropic and Google, both of which are aggressively marketing artificial intelligence solutions to corporate clients.

Historic $110B Capital Raise

Just last Friday, OpenAI officially announced the completion of a massive $110 billion funding round.

Amazon led the investment with a $50 billion contribution, while Nvidia and SoftBank each committed $30 billion to the round.

This fundraising effort ranks among the largest in technology sector history and provides OpenAI with substantial capital to pursue expansion across multiple business segments — including its nascent advertising operations.

Introducing advertisements to ChatGPT represents one component of OpenAI’s strategy to create multiple revenue streams beyond its existing subscription offerings and enterprise licensing agreements.

The Trade Desk, which provides a self-service programmatic advertising platform, could offer the scale and technical capabilities needed to help OpenAI effectively manage ad distribution across its expanding user base.

Neither organization has publicly confirmed any finalized partnership agreement.

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