OpenAI launches beta of “Businesses in ChatGPT,” supporting merchants in claiming pages and building a Business Agent
According to OpenAI’s official X post and product announcement, OpenAI launched the beta version of “Businesses in ChatGPT” on November 10. Merchants can claim their business pages in ChatGPT, manage business information, and view data on how users interact with them. Eligible merchants can also build a “Business Agent” to answer customer questions and introduce the products and services their business offers to users.
The feature is implemented through Business Hub. After merchants complete verification, they can update key information and add product feeds with prices and inventory. The system provides aggregated data, including mentions, website clicks, and common topics that appear when the business comes up in conversations, but OpenAI said it will not share users’ raw conversations or Business Agent chat content with merchants. Business Agent is currently available to eligible U.S. e-commerce and online services merchants. Conversations will be clearly labeled and distinguished from ChatGPT’s standalone answers.
OpenAI said the product is intended to help merchants connect with ChatGPT’s approximately 1.2 billion weekly users. Existing Enterprise customers and advertisers can claim through OpenAI representatives, and Shopify merchants can also connect their stores to simplify verification. Merchants can also sponsor Business Agent as the landing page for ChatGPT ads.
Original sources:
Title: Now in beta: Businesses in ChatGPT. Publisher: OpenAI (official X account) Publication date: 2026-11-10 URL: https://x.com/OpenAI/status/2120216592395174382 Nature of source: official company statement Verification status: The official X post and the full product announcement were actually read for this report (2026-11-10) Supporting content: Supports OpenAI launching the beta version of “Businesses in ChatGPT,” with merchants able to claim pages, manage information and view interaction data through Business Hub; eligible merchants can build a Business Agent to answer customer questions and introduce products and services.
ABAB AI Insight
On November 10, OpenAI launched “Businesses in ChatGPT” in beta, centered on Business Hub (for claiming and managing merchant information and viewing aggregated interaction data) and Business Agent (a conversational agent for eligible U.S. e-commerce and online services merchants). Business Agent uses merchant-provided information to answer questions, is clearly labeled, and is separated from ChatGPT’s main conversation. OpenAI emphasized that raw user conversations are not shared, and data is provided only in aggregated form after a certain threshold is reached.
The feature is related to earlier tests of ChatGPT ads and sponsored agents. Merchants can use Business Agent as an ad landing page, but OpenAI said payment will not affect ChatGPT’s independent recommendations or comparison results. Shopify merchants can simplify verification by connecting their stores and use existing product catalog integrations.
Compared with Google Business profiles, search-engine local results, and analytics tools, OpenAI’s approach is more focused on conversational discovery and agent interaction rather than traditional search results pages. At present, Business Agent is limited to specific merchants in the United States, and future expansion to more markets and categories is planned.
The product marks ChatGPT’s further extension from general Q&A into commercial discovery and conversion tools. In the near term, the scale of merchant claims and Agent launches will depend on the verification process and actual user usage; in the medium term, it will depend on the practical value of aggregated data to merchants, as well as the balance between advertising and organic recommendations. Metrics to watch are the number of merchants that claim pages, the volume of Business Agent conversations, and how users distinguish between labeled agents and standalone answers.
ABAB News · Laws of cognition
AI chat platforms can extend product discovery from search results to conversational interaction through merchant claiming and agent conversations.
Separating aggregated interaction data from raw conversations is a common way for platforms to protect user privacy while providing merchant insights.
Beta features are usually first limited to specific countries and merchant types before gradually expanding.