The Digiday Podcast OpenAI's ad push begins, and The Knot is co-piloting
Mar 3, 2026
Jenny Lewis, CMO at The Knot Worldwide, leads marketing and digital initiatives including The Knot’s early ChatGPT ad pilot. She discusses joining OpenAI’s ad trial, balancing brand and performance, measuring AI-driven channels versus traditional search, reorganizing SEO for AEO/GEO, and the company’s ChatGPT app strategy and measurement goals.
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ChatGPT Ads Target Massive Free Tier Audience
- OpenAI's Criteo partnership signals ads will roll out broadly to free-tier ChatGPT users, creating sizable ad inventory.
- Tim Peterson notes ChatGPT had ~900 million weekly users, implying large-scale ad impressions mainly for nonpaying users.
The Knot Was Approached After Building A ChatGPT App
- Jenny Lewis says OpenAI reached out in early January after The Knot had already been building a Knot app inside ChatGPT.
- The Knot's preexisting integration made them a natural early participant in OpenAI's ads pilot.
Require Safety Data And A Dedicated Partner Contact
- Prioritize brand and user safety, data transparency, and a dedicated partnership channel when testing new ad platforms.
- Jenny required a point of contact, data access, and recurring touchpoints before committing media test dollars.