OpenAI’s launch art for Businesses in ChatGPT. Image: OpenAI
Brands can now claim their own corner of ChatGPT. OpenAI launched Businesses in ChatGPT in beta on Tuesday, letting companies claim and verify a free profile, see how often ChatGPT mentions them and, in the US, publish a “Business Agent” that chats with shoppers on their behalf. The same agents can also be bought as ChatGPT ads.
What businesses get #
Everything runs through Business Hub, a new section in ChatGPT’s sidebar. OpenAI says any eligible business “located where ChatGPT is available” can claim its listing, then update its website, description, logo, delivery and return policies, and add product feeds with prices and availability. Shopify merchants can connect their store directly, while existing enterprise customers and advertisers can go through their OpenAI representative.
Claimed businesses also get insights covering the past 28 days: mentions, website clicks and “discovery topics”, the common themes in answers that cited them. For an online business, a mention counts only when ChatGPT references its website, and “the brand name alone doesn’t count”, according to OpenAI’s help page. OpenAI says businesses never see individual prompts or chats, including chats with their own agent, and that low counts are held back to protect privacy.
How verification works #
Claiming starts with a code sent by text, call or business email, a TXT record added to the company’s domain, or a Shopify login. That alone doesn’t earn a badge. The blue check appears only after the owner passes an identity check with verification firm Persona, which can ask for a government ID, business registration details and proof that they are allowed to represent the company. The same check is needed before a business can publish changes, see its insights or build an agent.
Owners can dispute a claim someone else has made, and OpenAI says claiming a profile “doesn’t change its visibility in ChatGPT.” Local stores and restaurants can, for now, claim only an existing US listing, while eligible online businesses may be able to add a new one.
Business Agents, and the ad behind them #
When a business turns up in a ChatGPT answer, users can click through to its profile and, if it has one, start a chat with its Business Agent to compare two products or ask about returns. OpenAI says the chat is “clearly labeled, separate from the customer’s original ChatGPT conversation”. Businesses write the agent’s instructions and supply its product details, but can’t bring an agent of their own. For now it can’t take payments, make bookings or check orders: it links to the company’s site to close the sale.
OpenAI’s new Business Agents Policy says an agent must be clear that it is AI, must not pose as a human or an independent adviser, and must not “create false urgency” or keep pushing a sale after someone says no.
The agents are free, but OpenAI’s post adds that businesses “can also sponsor their Business Agent and use it as the destination for ChatGPT Ads.” Benji Shomair, OpenAI’s vice president of monetisation, told Digiday at a press briefing that the free and paid versions are the same agent:
Think of the business agent as the organic experience. The sponsored agent is the paid experience, but the agent that sits behind it should be the same.
Benji Shomair, OpenAI, speaking to Digiday
Digiday reports that the hub and agents are free for now, and that Shomair didn’t rule out charging later. OpenAI says neither claiming a profile nor advertising changes ChatGPT’s independent answers. The ads business is growing fast: ChatGPT ads spread to 26 more countries in October, with more than 100,000 businesses already buying them.
Where it works #
Profiles can be claimed wherever ChatGPT is available and OpenAI supports verification, though eligibility depends on a business’s location and type. You don’t need a ChatGPT Enterprise plan or an ads account. Business Agents are US-only, and only for ecommerce and online service businesses with a website in approved industries. OpenAI hasn’t said when agents will reach the UK, Canada, Germany, Australia or the rest of the EU, and Shomair declined to give Digiday a timeline. Brands with several locations must manage each one separately for now.
Why it matters #
With 1.2 billion weekly users, ChatGPT is becoming a place where people find businesses, and OpenAI is now building the claim-your-listing system Google has long run with Business Profiles, with ads sold on top. Owners who have been guessing how to get ChatGPT to recommend them finally get numbers from OpenAI itself, but no promise of a better spot in its answers.
Sources: OpenAI, “Introducing Businesses in ChatGPT” (November 10, 2026); OpenAI Help Center, “Setting up your business on ChatGPT”; OpenAI, Business Agents Policy; Digiday.