https://aiadstracker.com/Every dated change to advertising in AI assistants, with sources.enThu, 05 Nov 2026 01:14:19 GMThttps://aiadstracker.com/timeline#google-aimode2026-10-28-google-aimode-Google AI Mode ads expand to 10 more countriesWed, 28 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMTAds in AI Mode expanded to Australia, Canada, India, Kenya, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Singapore. Multiturn ads launched in the US; Brazil, Mexico and the UK are planned for Q4.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-10-21-chatgpt-ChatGPT ads expand to 89 countriesWed, 21 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI added 26 countries, including 14 in Latin America, and said more than 100,000 advertisers have run campaigns since launch.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-10-05-chatgpt-Visual ads during image generation announcedMon, 05 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI said it would test clearly labeled visual ads shown during ChatGPT image generation in the US, kept separate from generated images.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-10-05-chatgpt-OpenAI names measurement partners and brand-suitability pilotsMon, 05 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI named conversion, attribution and incrementality partners including LiveRamp, AppsFlyer, Adjust, Branch and Haus, and pilots with DoubleVerify and IAS to evaluate its safeguards.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-09-23-chatgpt-ChatGPT ads reach Southeast Asia and TaiwanWed, 23 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMTAds launched in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Taiwan; OpenAI described availability as more than 60 countries.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-09-16-chatgpt-OpenAI tests Sponsored AgentsWed, 16 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMTUsers who click some ads can start a separate, labeled conversation with a business-sponsored agent. OpenAI also added AI tools for advertisers and HubSpot and Shopify integrations.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-08-31-chatgpt-Self-serve Ads Manager opens beyond the USMon, 31 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI opened self-serve buying across India, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, and said ads were rolling out in select Middle East and North Africa countries. A $1 billion annualized ad run rate was also reported around this time.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-08-24-chatgpt-ChatGPT ads expand to 31 European countriesMon, 24 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI's largest single expansion brought ads to Free and Go users in 31 European markets, including Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Ireland, Poland and the Netherlands.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#copilot2026-08-19-copilot-AI Max rolls out to all Microsoft Advertising accountsWed, 19 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMTMicrosoft began rolling out AI Max to all advertiser accounts globally, tied to conversational queries on Bing and Copilot (reported).https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-08-11-chatgpt-OpenAI confirms ads in five more countriesTue, 11 Aug 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI updated its ads post to say ads had launched in the UK, Mexico, Brazil, Japan and South Korea. Mexico and Brazil were separately reported live on August 17.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-06-22-chatgpt-ChatGPT ads reach Japan and South KoreaMon, 22 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMTAds were reported live in Japan and South Korea, the first non-English markets, with UK self-serve opening the same day.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#amazon-rufus2026-06-11-amazon-rufus-Amazon Ads sets out ad formats for Alexa for ShoppingThu, 11 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMTAmazon listed sponsored ads within conversations and Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands prompts, and said existing sponsored ads campaigns are automatically eligible.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-06-06-chatgpt-ChatGPT ads go live in the UKSat, 06 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI's VP of monetization announced UK ads were live. UK self-serve buying followed on June 22 (reported).https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#google-aimode2026-05-20-google-aimode-Google tests new ad formats inside AI ModeWed, 20 May 2026 12:00:00 GMTGoogle announced Conversational Discovery ads and Highlighted Answers, testing in the US in English, and expanded its Direct Offers pilot.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#amazon-rufus2026-05-13-amazon-rufus-Amazon merges Rufus into Alexa for ShoppingWed, 13 May 2026 12:00:00 GMTAmazon combined Rufus and Alexa+ into a single shopping assistant, Alexa for Shopping, for US customers.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-05-07-chatgpt-UK, Mexico, Brazil, Japan and South Korea named as next marketsThu, 07 May 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI said its ads pilot would expand to five more countries in the coming weeks.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-05-05-chatgpt-OpenAI launches self-serve Ads Manager with CPC biddingTue, 05 May 2026 12:00:00 GMTUS businesses could sign up and buy ChatGPT ads directly. OpenAI added CPC bidding alongside CPM, plus a Conversions API and pixel, and named agency and technology partners.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#gemini2026-04-29-gemini-Google signals AI Mode ad formats could come to GeminiWed, 29 Apr 2026 12:00:00 GMTOn Alphabet's Q1 earnings call, Google's chief business officer said a format that works well in AI Mode would transfer to the Gemini app, while saying Google is not rushing.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#copilot2026-04-22-copilot-Microsoft announces AI Max for Search and Offer HighlightsWed, 22 Apr 2026 12:00:00 GMTMicrosoft Advertising said AI Max would open as a pilot in May, expanding ad matching across Copilot and Bing, and introduced Offer Highlights for AI conversations.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-04-16-chatgpt-ChatGPT ads live in Canada, Australia and New ZealandThu, 16 Apr 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI's release notes confirmed ads rolling out to Free and Go users in the three markets.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-03-26-chatgpt-OpenAI plans first markets outside the USThu, 26 Mar 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI said early results were encouraging and that pilots in Canada, Australia and New Zealand would start in the coming weeks.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#amazon-rufus2026-03-25-amazon-rufus-Rufus Sponsored Prompts reach general availability in the USWed, 25 Mar 2026 12:00:00 GMTSponsored Products and Sponsored Brands prompts moved from beta to general availability and became billable per click.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-02-09-chatgpt-ChatGPT ads go live in the USMon, 09 Feb 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI began showing labeled ads to logged-in adults on the Free and Go plans in the US. Early pricing was reported at a $60 CPM with large minimum commitments.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#claude2026-02-04-claude-Anthropic says Claude will remain ad-freeWed, 04 Feb 2026 12:00:00 GMTAnthropic published its ad-free commitment and launched a Super Bowl campaign built around it.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#perplexity2026-02-perplexity-Perplexity moves away from advertisingSun, 01 Feb 2026 12:00:00 GMTThe Financial Times reported that Perplexity was abandoning its ads business, citing concerns about trust in its answers.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#chatgpt2026-01-16-chatgpt-OpenAI announces ChatGPT ads test and ad principlesFri, 16 Jan 2026 12:00:00 GMTOpenAI said it would test ads for logged-in adults on the Free and Go plans in the US, and published principles including answer independence and conversation privacy.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#gemini2025-12-08-gemini-Google: no ads in the Gemini app, and no current plansMon, 08 Dec 2025 12:00:00 GMTGoogle's VP of global ads disputed a report that ads would come to the Gemini app in 2026.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#amazon-rufus2025-11-amazon-rufus-Sponsored Prompts appear in the Amazon Ads consoleSat, 01 Nov 2025 12:00:00 GMTAmazon began rolling out Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands prompts tied to its Rufus shopping assistant (reported).https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#meta-ai2025-10-01-meta-ai-Meta says AI chats will shape ads on its appsWed, 01 Oct 2025 12:00:00 GMTMeta announced that interactions with Meta AI would be used to personalize ads and content from December 16, 2025, excluding the UK, EU and South Korea.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#grok2025-08-06-grok-Musk says ads are coming to Grok answersWed, 06 Aug 2025 12:00:00 GMTSpeaking to advertisers, Elon Musk said X would let advertisers pay to appear in Grok's suggested answers. No timeline was given.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#google-aimode2025-05-21-google-aimode-Google brings ads to AI Mode and AI Overviews on desktopWed, 21 May 2025 12:00:00 GMTAt Google Marketing Live, Google expanded AI Overviews ads to US desktop and began testing ads in AI Mode.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#copilot2025-03-copilot-Microsoft adds Showroom ads to CopilotSat, 01 Mar 2025 12:00:00 GMTMicrosoft introduced interactive Showroom ads designed for Copilot's chat interface, piloted with select advertisers.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#perplexity2024-11-perplexity-Perplexity starts testing sponsored follow-up questionsFri, 01 Nov 2024 12:00:00 GMTPerplexity began a US ads test using sponsored follow-up questions shown beside answers.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#google-aio2024-10-03-google-aio-Ads launch in Google AI OverviewsThu, 03 Oct 2024 12:00:00 GMTSearch and Shopping ads began appearing in AI Overviews for mobile users in the US, labeled Sponsored.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#copilot2023-09-copilot-Microsoft announces Compare & Decide ads for Bing ChatFri, 01 Sep 2023 12:00:00 GMTMicrosoft introduced its first conversational ad format for the chat interface that later became Copilot.https://aiadstracker.com/timeline#copilot2023-03-29-copilot-Microsoft says it is exploring ads in Bing ChatWed, 29 Mar 2023 12:00:00 GMTMicrosoft confirmed it was exploring placing ads in the chat experience that later became Copilot, and said it would share ad revenue with publishers.