Key points
- OpenAI launched a Business Hub in beta on Tuesday, where companies can create profiles and verify and update product and service information.
- Eligible companies can launch a business agent that lets ChatGPT users ask questions about the company and its products.
- Hub insights show profile views, business mentions, website clicks and other metrics; OpenAI has not detailed the verification process.
- OpenAI retired its commission-based checkout effort in March, according to TechCrunch.
Why it matters for marketers: Brands now have an official place to control how ChatGPT presents them and to see basic engagement data, which makes AI discovery a channel to manage.
OpenAI has launched a Business Hub in beta, a place where companies can set up profiles and verify and update information about their products and services. TechCrunch compares the format to the business profiles Google and other search engines already offer.
Eligible companies can also create a specialized business agent. ChatGPT users can ask that agent questions about the company and what it sells. The hub adds limited insights as well, covering profile views, business mentions, website clicks and other metrics, which TechCrunch likens to Google Analytics.
For marketers, this is a sign that AI discovery is becoming something brands can manage directly rather than only observe. Accurate, verified profile data may influence how ChatGPT describes a business when people compare options. The metrics give teams a first, if limited, way to see whether that visibility turns into traffic.
Details are still thin. Businesses must pass a verification process, but OpenAI has not said what it involves. Benji Shomair, OpenAI's VP of Monetization, told journalists there are multiple methods used for different business types and markets. Eligibility criteria are also not spelled out in the available material.
This is not OpenAI's first attempt at commerce. TechCrunch reports the company retired its commission-based checkout effort in March after it failed to take off. Whether profiles and agents fare better is unclear. Teams may want to audit how their business information appears in ChatGPT now, and watch for verification requirements as the beta expands.
Sources
This brief is our own summary. Read the full reporting at the source.