ChatGPT launches verified Business Agents that speak on behalf of brands
The beta feature starts with eligible US e-commerce and online services companies and comes with Business Hub, a tool that shows where a brand is mentioned in ChatGPT answers.
OpenAI announced Business Agents for ChatGPT in beta on November 10. They are verified AI agents that represent a company and talk with users about what it offers, including helping them compare products before they buy. The feature is rolling out first to eligible e-commerce and online services companies in the United States and is part of a broader set of business-focused features in ChatGPT.
According to The Verge, which reported on the launch on November 10, a conversation with a Business Agent begins when a company that has built its own agent shows up in a ChatGPT answer. From there, users can ask about the brand's products and services and keep going with follow-up questions, such as how two products differ.
The company itself decides how its agent behaves: it writes the instructions and supplies the business context the agent needs to know how to respond. OpenAI says conversations with these agents will be clearly labeled and kept separate from the user's main ChatGPT conversation.
Verification through Business Hub
So that users know they are talking to an agent that genuinely represents the company, brands will be able to claim their organization and get verified in a tool called Business Hub. OpenAI did not spell out its verification methods because they vary by type of business, Benji Shomair, OpenAI's vice president of monetization, explained during a press briefing.
Business Hub will also give companies data, such as brand mentions in ChatGPT answers and the top discovery topics in which the business appears.
What comes next, according to OpenAI
"Today's announcement is an early step toward bringing businesses more deeply into ChatGPT," OpenAI writes in a blog post. "We're starting with the fundamentals: accurate business information, useful insights, and conversations that help people make informed decisions."
The company says that as the feature evolves, it will explore other ways for businesses to connect with customers, either directly or through agents, both inside and outside ChatGPT. "Our goal is to make ChatGPT more useful for people making decisions and to give businesses new ways to participate and grow," OpenAI says.
What this means for brand teams
The entry point to a Business Agent is the ChatGPT answer itself: the agent only joins the conversation when the brand appears there. That makes visibility in ChatGPT answers, the core concern of AEO, the gateway to the feature. With Business Hub, companies gain access to data on their mentions in those answers and on the topics in which they are discovered. For now, the feature is in beta and limited to eligible e-commerce and online services companies in the United States.
Key questions
Who can create a Business Agent in ChatGPT?
For now, eligible e-commerce and online services companies in the United States, as part of a feature launched in beta.
How does a user reach a Business Agent?
When a company that has created an agent appears in a ChatGPT answer. The conversation with the agent is clearly labeled and kept separate from the main conversation.
What does Business Hub offer companies?
It lets them claim and verify their organization, and it shows data such as brand mentions in ChatGPT answers and the top discovery topics in which the brand appears.
Source: The Verge.