Sponsored ads appeared in 47% of the ChatGPT conversations about video games and consoles that Comscore tracked in U.S. PC activity in June, up from 3% in March.<\/p>\n
The figure is from Comscore\u2019s Q2 2026 AI Intelligence Report<\/a>, released on Sept. 22.\u00a0During this period, ad presence increased from 5% to 24% in toys and hobbies discussions, and from 9% to 22% in books, music, and video.<\/p>\n Gaming Conversations Climbed Fastest<\/p>\n Ad presence in ChatGPT gaming conversations stayed between 3% and 4% through April, then increased to 18% in May and reached 47% in June.<\/p>\n Toys and hobbies grew each month, from 5% in March to 12% in April, 14% in May, and 24% in June.\u00a0Books, music, and video fluctuated more: from 9% in March to 12% in April, a dip to 8% in May, and a rise to 22% in June.<\/p>\n What Comscore Counted<\/p>\n Comscore\u2019s retail chart focuses on conversations rather than tracking individual users or ad impressions.\u00a0It shows the share of ChatGPT conversations, which Comscore classifies by retail category, that include a sponsored ad.\u00a0The source note<\/a> in the slide mentions that the data reflects U.S. PC activity only and is based on an opt-in panel.<\/p>\n However, the report doesn\u2019t specify the number of conversations behind each monthly figure or detail how conversations are categorized.\u00a0It also isn\u2019t clear whether just one sponsored ad in any part of a conversation is enough for it to be counted.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also unclear whether Comscore\u2019s base includes conversations from ad-free plans. OpenAI\u2019s help center<\/a> says ads may appear for Free and Go users and in logged-out use, while Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, and Edu accounts are ad-free. If conversations from ad-free plans are in the denominator, the chart doesn\u2019t reveal the ad rate among conversations eligible to show ads.<\/p>\n Where The Series Falls In OpenAI\u2019s Ad Rollout<\/p>\n OpenAI began testing ads in ChatGPT<\/a> on Feb. 9 for logged-in adults in the U.S. on the Free and Go tiers. Comscore\u2019s retail series starts in March, a few weeks into that test.<\/p>\n On May 5, OpenAI began rolling out<\/a> a beta self-serve Ads Manager and added cost-per-click bidding next to the CPM buying it offered in the pilot\u2019s first phase. June, the highest month in all three categories, was the first full month after OpenAI began rolling out the beta self-serve Ads Manager. Comscore doesn\u2019t link the two, and the chart can\u2019t show whether new advertisers, more inventory, or something else drove the jump.<\/p>\n How This Compares With Earlier Data<\/p>\n Comscore\u2019s September 3 report<\/a> revealed that sponsored ads appeared in 6% of hotel-related ChatGPT prompts with source links in March. This number grew to 14% in April and 24% in May.\u00a0Since this series only counts prompts with source links, it doesn\u2019t directly match retail percentages.<\/p>\n In August, SEJ highlighted<\/a> SE Ranking\u2019s ChatGPT ads report, which examined 50,006 commercial prompts collected on July 23 and found that 25.94% of them included ads.<\/p>\n Why This Matters<\/p>\n SE Ranking\u2019s report<\/a> analyzed how frequently ChatGPT displayed ads in response to prompts written by a vendor on a single day.\u00a0Meanwhile, Comscore\u2019s chart shows the frequency of user-initiated conversations that included an ad over time, across three retail categories in U.S. PC activity.<\/p>\n In the categories of games, toys, and media, sponsored placements appeared in 22% to 47% of June conversations tracked, depending on the category.\u00a0Until Comscore releases detailed conversation counts,\u00a0the\u00a0June increase should be considered a preliminary observation.<\/p>\n Looking Ahead<\/p>\n