Snap is already sharing plans for AI-based ads in its My AI chatbot, which it widely released last month. At its NewFronts showcase for advertisers on Tuesday, Snap said it was testing “sponsored links” in My AI, which is similar to how Microsoft has been testing ads in Bing Chat.
If a person is chatting with AI about video games, that could trigger a promoted link to related games, Snap said in an announcement ahead of its NewFronts show. Discussions about food could prompt responses with links to local restaurants and talks about travel could come with ads from hotels, and so forth. At its NewFront in Lincoln Center in New York, Snap also covered new content, new video ad formats and new creator services, including a new platform for brands to connect with Snap stars.
Related: How Snap’s My AI chatbot would spice up the NewFronts
Snapchat has been racing ahead to be the first mainstream social media platform—ahead of Meta’s Instagram and Facebook, TikTok, Reddit, and others—to incorporate ChatGPT, the AI text generator into its services. Last month, at its partner summit, Snap launched My AI for all users, after experimenting with it as a part of the paid subscription Snap service. My AI has become an instant source of fascination, curiosity and a bit of fear among users, as people talk with the AI assistant and press the boundaries of its knowledge. After launch, reviews started pouring in, and memes were surfacing online, with users concerned about how prominent My AI appeared within the Snapchat experience. Users were also concerned about how Snap’s AI knew their location. Snap issued a public statement clarifying that My AI only knows the location information that Snap users already permitted the service to access through features such as Snap Maps.
