From Recipes to Road Trips, OpenAI's Biggest ChatGPT Ad Campaign Hits Home

OpenAI's Biggest Ad Push Yet Brings ChatGPT Into Everyday Moments

OpenAI is rolling out its largest brand campaign for ChatGPT, anchored in human stories instead of tech demos. Debuting during NFL Primetime, the work runs across the U.S. and U.K. through year-end on TV, streaming, outdoor, paid social, and via influencer partnerships. It's a bigger media buy, and on more channels, than the company's Super Bowl spot earlier this year, according to CMO Kate Rouch.

The message is simple: ChatGPT is useful in the moments people actually live. "We're showing their stories in ways that others can see and connect with," said Rouch. "Our goal is for people to look at these moments and think, 'this is for me.'"

Inside the creative: real life, no hype

The ads are built from real use cases: planning a trip, finding a recipe to impress a new romantic partner, and getting actionable fitness tips. Each spot centers on young people-some of the most proactive users of the product-making quick, everyday decisions with help from ChatGPT. Additional films will roll out later this year.

Media strategy snapshot

• Markets: U.S. and U.K., running through the end of the year.
• Channels: TV, streaming, outdoor, paid social, and influencer partnerships.
• Moment-based placements: Kicks off in NFL Primetime to reach broad, habitual viewers.
• Scale: Bigger media investment than the brand's Super Bowl debut.

Why this matters for creatives and marketers

• Shift from features to feelings: The brand is selling outcomes (confidence, clarity, momentum) by showing quick wins in everyday context.
• Habit formation: Repeated, relatable scenarios nudge people to try ChatGPT for small tasks, which builds usage over time.
• Broad accessibility: Casting and scenarios lower perceived barriers and reduce the "tech" distance.
• Integrated storytelling: TV for reach, creators for credibility, OOH for reinforcement, social for participation.

Steal-worthy tactics for your next campaign

• Anchor on "micro-moments": Identify 5-7 routine moments where your product removes friction (first date, deadline crunch, weekend planning).
• Show the outcome, hint at the mechanism: Lead with the result (better plan, smarter choice), then reveal the tool briefly.
• Cast for relatability: Prioritize everyday faces and settings over polished, high-production sets.
• Design for sequences: 6-second teasers (problem), 15-second reveals (solution), 30-second narratives (context + payoff).
• Creator handoff: Give influencers a prompt or constraint and let them interpret the use case in their voice.
• Invite participation: Ask audiences to share their own use moments; feature the best responses in later waves.
• Measure what matters: Track brand lift on "usefulness" and "fits my life," not just awareness.

Creative checklist

• One problem, one person, one setting per spot.
• A clear before/after beat within the first 5 seconds.
• On-screen prompts or questions to make the scenario scannable without sound.
• End with an invitation: "Try this next time you…" to cue a specific behavior.

Where to learn more

• See product context from the source: ChatGPT by OpenAI.
• Level up team skills for practical, campaign-ready workflows: AI Certification for Marketing Specialists and Courses by Job.