- ChatGPT app suggestions have now been disabled after some users mistook them for ads.
- OpenAI hints at future user controls to determine which suggestions are shown
- The reaction suggests that the ads would not be welcome on the platform.
User anger and confusion over the ads appearing on ChatGPT continues, and now it appears that OpenAI has completely disabled its controversial app suggestions because they looked too much like ads.
Over the weekend, different OpenAI leaders offered conflicting perspectives on the “non-ad ads” situation, with OpenAI research director Marc Chen suggesting, in a response on X.com, that the company is turning off app suggestions entirely until it can “improve model accuracy.”
Chen also suggested that OpenAI could implement a way for users to turn off app suggestions in the future. “We’re also looking at better controls so you can reduce it or turn it off if you don’t find it useful.”
I agree that anything that looks like an advertisement needs to be handled with care and we fall short. We have disabled these types of suggestions while we improve the accuracy of the model. We’re also looking at better controls so you can reduce or disable it if you don’t find it useful.December 5, 2025
How do we get here?
Recently introduced ChatGPT apps within conversations, meaning you can invoke an app simply by asking a question. ChatGPT currently supports apps from Booking.com, Canva, Expedia, and others. OpenAI also released an SDK for developers, so more apps can be added in the future.
The problem arose because ChatGPT also automatically suggests apps when they seem relevant to the discussion. For example, if you’re talking about buying a new home, ChatGPT might suggest the Zillow app so you can browse listings within ChatGPT using an interactive map.
Unfortunately, these app suggestions look a lot like ads when they appear, as shown in screenshots circulating online. Ads have never been part of the ChatGPT experience until now.
User confusion
Nick Turley, director of ChatGPT, denied that OpenAI was serving ads in a post on X, suggesting that the confusion was due to a user misunderstanding and not OpenAI’s intentions.
I see a lot of confusion about announcement rumors on ChatGPT. There is no live testing for ads – any screenshot you have seen is not real or advertising. If we pursue ads, we will take a thoughtful approach. People trust ChatGPT and everything we do will be designed to respect that.December 6, 2025
“I see a lot of confusion about rumored ads on ChatGPT. There is no live testing for ads, and any screenshot you’ve seen isn’t real or advertising. If we pursue ads, we’ll take a thoughtful approach. People trust ChatGPT, and everything we do will be designed to respect that.”
But as users pointed out, if an app suggestion is indistinguishable from an ad, it doesn’t matter what OpenAI calls it because the user experience is exactly the same.
“Fake ones aside, real ‘non-ads’ ones are still eroding trust in the ChatGPT experience because they look like ads,” said X user Ben Dickenson.
In contrast, Marc Chen was more conciliatory and admitted that ChatGPT’s app suggestions looked like ads. He stated that the company has currently disabled them, saying it “failed” to meet user expectations.
fall short
There appears to have been some internal confusion at OpenAI over the weekend. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who is usually quick to comment on ChatGPT issues, has been noticeably quiet about X recently and there has been no official statement from the OpenAI account.
It seems inevitable that ads will one day arrive on the ChatGPT platform, but user reaction to app suggestions that looked like ads suggests they wouldn’t be welcomed, especially by paying customers.
OpenAI may insist that these were not ads, but users have made it clear that intent does not matter; only perception does it. When ChatGPT returns suggestions, they must feel unmistakably different from advertising, or the reaction will return just as quickly.
The best business laptops for every budget
