· 4 min read
OpenAI Ads update, late October: creative enhancements, multi-image ads, 89 countries and an API that opens the archive
October was the busiest month since ChatGPT Ads launched. Within three weeks OpenAI switched on a default-on automation for ad copy, opened a new ad format, enabled 26 countries and extended the Advertiser API by a handful of endpoints. This article sums up what changed, which parts affect you and what is already live in Chatvertise.
What changed in late October
Creative enhancements
Status: On by default since 30 Oct; opt out per account or campaign in Ads Manager
In Chatvertise: Decision guide in the article; status display after verification
Multi-image ads
Status: Open beta since 26 Oct, open to all advertisers per OpenAI
In Chatvertise: Image mode “Multiple images” with crop dialog
26 new countries
Status: 89 countries per OpenAI (21 Oct)
In Chatvertise: Country picker follows the API allowlist
Ads next to image generation
Status: US only, test group
In Chatvertise: Not controllable via the API
Feed management via API
Status: Create, SFTP, upload history, archive
In Chatvertise: “Product feeds” page
Account kill switch and API keys
Status: New API endpoints
In Chatvertise: “Ad account” page, owners only
Archive is reversible
Status: Ad: archived → paused
In Chatvertise: Pause button on archived objects
| Change | Status | In Chatvertise |
|---|---|---|
| Creative enhancements | On by default since 30 Oct; opt out per account or campaign in Ads Manager | Decision guide in the article; status display after verification |
| Multi-image ads | Open beta since 26 Oct, open to all advertisers per OpenAI | Image mode “Multiple images” with crop dialog |
| 26 new countries | 89 countries per OpenAI (21 Oct) | Country picker follows the API allowlist |
| Ads next to image generation | US only, test group | Not controllable via the API |
| Feed management via API | Create, SFTP, upload history, archive | “Product feeds” page |
| Account kill switch and API keys | New API endpoints | “Ad account” page, owners only |
| Archive is reversible | Ad: archived → paused | Pause button on archived objects |
1. Creative enhancements are on by default since 30 October
The change with the biggest consequences: OpenAI may rewrite your headlines and descriptions, translate the copy, adjust images and even redirect the destination URL to a different page of your website. The inputs are the context of the conversation, your existing ad and the content of your landing page. The feature has been active for new and existing self-serve campaigns since 30 October unless you switched it off in Ads Manager. What exactly can happen, when you want it and how the account and campaign settings interact is covered in Creative enhancements: what OpenAI now changes automatically in your ads.
2. Ads with multiple images
Since 26 October, Ads Manager offers a second format for chat cards: four to six square images in a fixed order, one shared destination URL, a “Learn more” button. According to OpenAI's advertiser email of 30 October the format is open to all advertisers. In the API the field is called file_ids, and Chatvertise supports it in the ad form including a crop dialog for non-square images. The full walkthrough is in Multi-image ads in ChatGPT.
3. 26 new countries, more than 100,000 advertisers
On 21 October OpenAI extended availability to 89 countries, including 14 countries in Latin America such as Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Peru, plus Nigeria, South Africa and Ukraine. At the same time OpenAI gave a number for the first time: more than 100,000 advertisers have already run campaigns in ChatGPT. For targeting, however, the announcement doesn't count, the API's allowlist does. How the two relate and which countries you can select today is in the updated country list.
4. Visual ads next to generated images
Since October OpenAI has been testing a display format in the US that appears next to images users have ChatGPT generate. The ads are labelled and don't influence the result. A test group of advertisers is in at launch; the format can't be booked or controlled via the Advertiser API. For European advertisers this is something to watch, not a task.
5. Brand-safety pilots with DoubleVerify and IAS
Alongside the visual format OpenAI announced pilots with DoubleVerify and Integral Ad Science for brand-suitability measurement. That is aimed at larger advertisers and agencies that need such proof for every channel. There is nothing in the API for it yet; we're keeping an eye on it.
6. The API opens feeds, account and archive
The Advertiser API specification has only grown by eight lines since early October, the multi-image field. But we checked every endpoint that was still on the list against the real account and built them in:
- Create product feeds, create and pause SFTP access, read the upload history with diagnostics, archive feeds. Details in Managing product feeds via the API.
- Pause and reactivate the whole ad account, create additional API keys, maintain the three account names separately. See Managing the ad account: kill switch, API keys and account names.
- Image crop for chat cards: the API returns and accepts a square crop for non-square images. Chatvertise shows the same crop in the preview.
- And a side finding: archived ads can be brought back by pausing them. The archive is not a final state; more in Reactivating archived ads.
7. Still gated: lead sync and crawler evidence
Two things from the specification still answer “not enabled”: lead-sync subscriptions, which would push new leads to your system via webhook, and the crawler evidence per rejected ad. Both are built defensively into Chatvertise and appear as soon as OpenAI enables them for the account.
What to do now
- In the OpenAI Ads Manager under “Manage settings”, check whether creative enhancements should be on or off for your account and campaigns. Since 30 October the answer is “on” if you haven't changed anything.
- For products that benefit from several views, test a multi-image ad next to the existing single-image ad, not instead of it.
- Only add new countries to targeting once they're available in the country picker; the API's error message remains the only proof.
As with every update: we only build what we have verified against the real account. The previous updates are at early October and late September.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I have to act on creative enhancements right away?
- Only if you don't want OpenAI to change your ads automatically. In that case switch the feature off in Ads Manager under “Manage settings” for the account or individual campaigns. Variants that already ran can't be recalled.
- Can I book the visual ad format next to generated images?
- Not at the moment. The format runs in the US only with a test group and can neither be booked nor controlled via the Advertiser API.
- Are the 26 new countries available for targeting immediately?
- Not automatically. The API's allowlist decides which countries can be selected in an ad group. Chatvertise updates the country picker as soon as the API accepts a country.