TLDR
OpenAI will switch on automatic rewriting of ChatGPT ad headlines, descriptions, images and landing pages from 30 October unless advertisers opt out. Australian brands on the platform since March, including Virgin Australia and Xero, are in scope.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
What switches on, and when
OpenAI will turn on what it calls creative enhancements for new and existing self-serve ChatGPT Ads campaigns from Friday 30 October 2026, according to an email sent to advertisers on 20 October. When the setting is on, the system can write new or updated headlines and descriptions to fit the conversation or the user's interests, translate ad text, resize images, and send clicks to a different relevant page on the advertiser's website.[1]
The email says: "When enabled, these ads can run automatically without requiring you to review or approve each version." OpenAI's help page, checked by PPC Land on 21 October, gives the start date as Thursday 29 October and does not limit the change to self-serve campaigns.[1]
How to opt out
Advertisers can switch the setting off in Ads Manager before the start date or at any time after it, at account or campaign level; campaign settings override the account default, and existing opt-outs are kept. One toggle covers all four kinds of change, so an advertiser cannot, for example, allow image resizing while blocking rewritten headlines.[1]
Neither OpenAI's email nor its help page describes reporting that shows which version of an ad ran.[1] That matters for anyone who has to show a regulator or a client exactly what copy appeared.
Who it affects in Australia
ChatGPT Ads launched in Australia and New Zealand in March 2026. Brands named at the time or since include Virgin Australia, Luxury Escapes, Xero, Budget Direct, Kogan, Airwallex, AG1 and L'Oréal Group, and OpenAI said in September that its ad business had passed a US$1 billion annualised revenue run rate.[2] Virgin Australia chief marketing officer Libby Minogue told B&T: "Our ambition is to build a relationship with people in this environment that earns our place in the conversation."[2]
OpenAI says more than 100,000 advertisers have run ChatGPT Ads since launch, a cumulative figure rather than an active count, and the ads are now sold in 89 countries.[1] For banks, insurers, health brands and other advertisers whose copy goes through legal review, the practical step before 30 October is to decide whether to keep the default.
Other changes this month
OpenAI is also testing wider cards and larger images on existing campaigns, "with no action required from advertisers", has redesigned the conversions overview in Ads Manager, started weekly performance emails, and added measurement partners including Northbeam, DV Rockerbox and INCRMNTAL.[3]
SOURCES & CITATIONS
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What will ChatGPT Ads change automatically?
When does it start?
How do advertisers opt out?
Can advertisers see which version ran?
James Dore is founder and editor of Prompt the Market and Strategy Director at Bushnote, a Sydney strategy, SEO and AI search agency. He has a background in strategy, media and financial services, and led consumer product marketing at MONEYME. He writes on AI search, answer engines, technology policy and media economics.
