Anthropic Pinky promises that it will not add ads to Claude

In the latest chapter of Anthropic’s “We’re Not Like Others” campaign, the artificial intelligence company is Pledge Not inserting ads into conversations with its chatbot, Claude. Large sums of money are spent on it Super Bowl ads To make sure you know this fact.

Anthropic’s ad takes a clear shot at OpenAI’s competitor. The maker of ChatGPT said a few weeks ago that it would do so Start testing ads In its products that will be “clearly marked” as sponsored posts. The company also said it will not run ads on sensitive or regulated topics, such as mental health and politics.

The news was a stark reversal from previous statements – OpenAI CEO Sam Altman Named “last resort” in 2024. But it wasn’t entirely unexpected, given the general disarray of AI industry funding.

For a long time, AI startups have been operating at a loss, spending billions of dollars from venture capitalists and others to build their chatbots without making money. OpenAI and many others have it now A complex network of circular deals to keep the lights on, but newer advanced models require more computing, better chips, and generally more maintenance and money to keep up. Humans are certainly not immune to these financial pressures. The company is conducting a new insurance operation A $10 billion financing deal.

That’s why AI companies are looking for new sources of revenue. Hence the ads.

The concern about including ads in chatbots (beyond general irritation) is that they will push products at the expense of helping users. “Users shouldn’t have to guess whether AI is actually helping them or subtly steering the conversation toward something monetizable,” Anthropic wrote.

There is also a risk that technology companies will prioritize advertising and revenue metrics over safety or user autonomy. OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

For its part, Anthropic has been very vocal about the risks posed by AI technology, so it’s not surprising to hear the company’s take on the issue. CEO Dario Amodei has spoken along About the potential threat that artificial intelligence systems may pose to humanity.

But we have an abundance of relatable examples — streaming services, smart TVs, and now chatbots — where tech companies have tried and ultimately failed to resist the lure of advertisers’ money. We can never say never. Anthropic didn’t do that.