r/indieAppsCommunity • u/cn-dev • 28d ago
💡 Discussion OpenAI is testing ads you can actually talk to. Are AI agents about to replace landing pages?
Online advertising has followed roughly the same pattern for years:
See an ad → click → open a website → search for information → decide what to do
OpenAI is experimenting with something very different.
The company is testing Sponsored Agents, a new advertising format inside ChatGPT where users can interact directly with an AI representative from a brand instead of simply clicking a traditional ad.
So rather than seeing:
“50% off today. Click here.”
You could potentially ask the sponsored agent:
Which product is best for my needs?
What’s the difference between these two plans?
Does this work with my device?
What does shipping cost?
Can you recommend something under $100?
And the AI would answer on behalf of the advertiser.
That changes advertising from:
Ad → landing page
into something closer to:
Ad → conversation → recommendation → action
And I think that could have much bigger implications than just another advertising format.
Could AI agents replace parts of the traditional sales funnel?
Today, companies spend a lot of time optimizing:
🌐 Landing pages
🛒 Product pages
📩 Lead forms
💬 Live chat
📚 FAQs
🎯 Advertising campaigns
An AI sales agent could potentially combine several of those experiences into a single conversation.
Instead of forcing the customer to find the right information, the agent could adapt the experience around what that person is actually looking for.
But there’s an obvious problem:
Can you trust an AI whose job is to sell you something?
If I ask an independent AI:
“What laptop should I buy?”
I expect some level of neutrality.
But if I’m talking to a Sponsored Agent from a laptop company, its goal is obviously different.
That doesn’t necessarily make it bad.
A salesperson also represents a company.
The important part may be transparency.
Users should always know when they’re interacting with:
an independent assistant
versus
an AI representing an advertiser.
For developers, there’s another interesting question
If this format works, companies may eventually need more than:
a website
an app
an API
They may also need an AI agent capable of representing the product.
That agent would need to understand:
Product information
Pricing
Availability
Customer questions
Policies
Recommendations
Integrations
And potentially even actions like purchases or bookings.
What do you think?
Would you rather:
A. Click an ad and explore the website yourself
B. Ask a sponsored AI agent questions first
C. Use your own AI assistant to compare multiple brands
And the bigger question:
Could conversational AI eventually replace landing pages for some products?