On 10 November 2026 OpenAI published “Introducing Businesses in ChatGPT”, and I went through the announcement line by line and checked it against the first reports. The core point: businesses can now verify themselves in ChatGPT through Business Hub, maintain their own details and see how often they are mentioned and clicked, while Business Agents (a company's own chat agent) are limited to eligible US businesses for now.
TL;DR
Businesses in ChatGPT launches in beta, and OpenAI cites 1.2 billion people using ChatGPT each week.
In Business Hub, any eligible business located where ChatGPT is available can claim its profile, verify it and add product feeds with pricing and availability.
Insights show aggregated mentions, profile views, website clicks and discovery topics; user conversations are not shared.
Business Agents are available only to eligible ecommerce and online service businesses in the United States; OpenAI plans more markets but gives no dates.
For UK and EU businesses, claiming the profile and cleaning up data is the useful step today, not waiting for the agent.
The numbers set the context. OpenAI puts weekly ChatGPT users at 1.2 billion, and the advertising side is growing alongside: trade reports cite a $1 billion annualised run rate for ChatGPT Ads at 31 August 2026 and a launch in 31 European markets on 24 August (OpenAI figures or vendor estimates, not independently verified). The European Commission designated ChatGPT a very large online search engine on 31 August, after OpenAI declared 159.1 million users in the EU. Business Hub is the first place where companies can manage and measure that reach themselves. That makes it relevant to anyone doing SEO today, because part of customer research now happens in a chat window instead of on Google.
What are Businesses in ChatGPT?
In short: It is a beta in which companies get a verified profile inside ChatGPT and manage data, insights and an optional agent through Business Hub.
According to OpenAI's announcement, the package has two parts: Business Hub (claim a profile, maintain information, view insights) and Business Agents (a chat with the business inside ChatGPT). When a business appears in a ChatGPT answer, users can click through to its profile, see products and details, and open the website. OpenAI's stated aim is accurate, up-to-date business information and broader coverage, much like a directory listing, but inside the AI answer. For the wider platform picture, see my earlier post on the ChatGPT app directory.
How does Business Hub work?
In short: A business claims its profile, gets verified, then updates details and adds product feeds with pricing and availability.
Verification comes first; only afterwards can details be changed and feeds added. Search Engine Roundtable describes the tool as Search Console-like and stresses that only verified owners have access. “ChatGPT Search Console” is an informal nickname, not an official product name.
Function | What it does | Who can use it |
Claim profile | Links the business to a verified ChatGPT profile | Any eligible business in a country where ChatGPT is available |
Update details | Changes key information after verification | Verified owners |
Product feeds | Self-service feeds with pricing and availability | Verified owners |
Enterprise and advertisers | Claim via the OpenAI representative | Existing OpenAI Enterprise customers and advertisers |
Shopify | Connect the store from Business Hub or Shopify admin; eligible products are already in ChatGPT through Shopify Catalog | Shopify merchants |
What insights do businesses get?
In short: The hub shows aggregated mentions, profile views, website clicks and topics, but never individual conversations.
OpenAI lists mentions, website clicks and discovery topics, meaning common themes in conversations where the business's website is cited. Data is aggregated and appears only when conversation volume meets certain thresholds. OpenAI does not share user conversations or Business Agent chats with businesses. Search Engine Roundtable adds that the tool shows no prompt data, no competitor benchmarks and no rankings, and does not explain why numbers change. In practice the numbers tell you that something changed, not why.
What are Business Agents and who can use them?
In short: A Business Agent is a company's chat agent inside ChatGPT, currently available only to eligible ecommerce and online service businesses in the US.
After claiming a profile, eligible organisations can build, test and launch an agent. Customers choose whether to start the conversation. OpenAI's example is a shopper comparing two products and asking which fits their needs, with the agent answering from the business's own information. The chat is clearly labelled, separate from the original ChatGPT conversation and distinct from ChatGPT's independent answers. If you want the difference between answer tools and acting systems explained, read generative AI vs agentic AI.
Feature | Business Hub | Business Agent |
Status | Beta | Available to eligible businesses |
Region | Eligible businesses where ChatGPT is available | US only (ecommerce and online services) |
Requirement | Claim and verification | Claimed profile, then build, test, launch |
Labelling | Verified profile | Clearly labelled, separate chat |
Expansion | More markets planned | More markets and categories planned, no dates |
How do ChatGPT Ads and sponsored agents fit in?
In short: Businesses can sponsor their Business Agent and use it as the destination for ChatGPT Ads; sponsored placements are labelled and separate from answers.
Sponsored agents were not new on 10 November. The Next Web reported on 16 September that OpenAI was testing them with select US advertisers, with HubSpot as the first CRM partner and Shopify as the first ecommerce partner. PPC Land adds that ChatGPT Ads went live in 31 European markets on 24 August, while the Shopify app was English-only and open to US merchants first; most figures are OpenAI's own or vendor estimates. For a business view of ads in the product, see ChatGPT versus Pinterest in search, which shows where ChatGPT competes with other search products.
How do I claim my business in ChatGPT?
In short: Open Business Hub, claim the profile, verify, check the details, add feeds, then watch the insights.
OpenAI has not published a full guide for every verification route; the Shopify route and the route via an OpenAI representative are the two described publicly. The steps below are my sequence based on the announcement, and the interface may differ during the beta.
Open Business Hub: Use the “Claim your business in ChatGPT” link in the OpenAI announcement and confirm that your business is located in a country where ChatGPT is available.
Find and claim the profile: Search for the business and choose “Claim profile”.
Verify ownership: Shopify merchants connect the store from Business Hub or Shopify admin; Enterprise customers and advertisers go through their OpenAI representative.
Check and update details: Match name, services, location and description with your own website.
Add a product feed: Provide pricing and availability, and decide who owns data quality in your team.
Record a baseline: Note mentions, profile views and website clicks on day one, before making changes.
Assess the agent: Build, test and launch a Business Agent only if you are a US business in an eligible category.
What does it mean for SEO, GEO and UK/EU businesses?
In short: UK and EU companies can use the profile and data tools but not the agent yet; the lever is clean data and a measurement baseline.
The split is clear. Business Hub is open to eligible businesses where ChatGPT is available, while Business Agents are US-only for now. So the practical move is to align your data today rather than wait for the agent. If you want help with this, an AI consulting or SEO agency partner can run the audit, and our guide to the future of SEO in Germany covers the local and data-protection side.
SEO and GEO checklist
Keep company name, services and markets identical across website, profile and feed.
Decide whether to allow OAI-SearchBot (search); according to Wavect this is a separate decision from GPTBot (training).
Report platform mentions, sampled answers, website sessions and outcomes separately.
Record missing data as unknown, not zero, because thresholds can hide small numbers.
Log changes to content, feeds and campaigns with dates, and compare equivalent periods.
How do I rate the launch?
In short: A sensible start with clear limits: the profile is useful, the measurement is coarse, and the agent is out of reach outside the US.
This is not a product review, so I give no star rating. My assessment: businesses can finally feed in their own data and see clicks, which is new. The value is limited because there is no prompt data, no competitor comparison and no ranking, and verification rules beyond Shopify and Enterprise are not fully published. Whether taking part gives any ranking advantage is not documented.
Conclusion
Introducing Businesses in ChatGPT is a beta start with clear value for data upkeep and visibility, but it does not explain why numbers rise or fall. Business Hub is open to eligible businesses where ChatGPT is available; Business Agents stay limited to the US for now. If you do SEO, align your data now and record a baseline. Related reading: agentic AI vs Generative AI and AI shopping assistant tools for ecommerce.
FAQs about Businesses in ChatGPT
What is Businesses in ChatGPT?
It is an OpenAI beta that lets companies claim a ChatGPT profile, maintain data and see insights. Example: a Manchester online shop for running shoes verifies its profile, then sees how often ChatGPT mentions it and how many clicks reach its website.
Does Business Hub cost anything?
The announcement names no price for claiming a profile. Costs appear only if a business sponsors its agent and uses ChatGPT Ads. Example: an electronics retailer maintains its profile with no ad budget and only looks at pricing when it wants to test paid placements.
Can UK and EU businesses use Business Agents?
Not at the moment. OpenAI says Business Agents are available to eligible ecommerce and online service businesses in the United States, with more markets planned. Example: a Berlin online pharmacy can claim its profile but cannot launch its own chat agent yet.
Does OpenAI share user conversations with businesses?
No. OpenAI does not share conversations or Business Agent chats; businesses see aggregated figures, and only above minimum thresholds. Example: a small studio with a handful of mentions a week may see no data at all, which does not mean it had no mentions.
Does verification improve my ranking in ChatGPT?
There is no evidence for that. Wavect notes that no ranking benefit from ownership verification is documented. Example: an accountancy firm should check after claiming whether ChatGPT describes its services correctly instead of expecting a higher position.
What should I do first?
Claim the profile, align your company data and record a baseline. Example: an agency notes mentions and clicks on launch day, changes its product feed, and compares equivalent four-week periods instead of reading single daily values.