OpenAI brings businesses into ChatGPT with Business Hub and Business Agents

On November 10, 2026, OpenAI introduced Businesses in ChatGPT, a beta platform that allows eligible companies to claim and manage their presence in ChatGPT.

Through Business Hub, a company can verify its profile and update information such as its website, business description, product and service categories, and commercial policies. Retailers can also provide product feeds containing prices and availability, including through Shopify.

The process requires verification of the company's ownership or authorized representation, followed by identity verification through Persona. The blue verification badge appears only after Persona approval. OpenAI reviews business information updates, which may take time to appear in ChatGPT responses.

The system does not replace other information sources used by the model. OpenAI explicitly states that claiming a profile does not guarantee more recommendations or preferential placement.

Business Hub introduces an Insights section with aggregated activity covering the previous 28 days.

Businesses can examine mentions, website clicks and *discovery topics*: recurring subjects in ChatGPT answers where the business appears.

The definition of a mention depends on the business type. For an online business, ChatGPT must reference its website; merely naming the brand does not count. For a local business, displaying a result for that location counts as a mention.

These metrics do not expose individual user prompts or directly measure purchase intent. OpenAI does not share consumer conversations with businesses, including conversations with Business Agents. Reporting also depends on minimum activity thresholds, so missing metrics do not necessarily indicate zero activity.

EMPV previously examined how AI systems select sources in its Research Note on SEO and GEO. Business Hub adds a different capability: selected visibility metrics provided directly by ChatGPT. They should not be interpreted as a complete measure of brand exposure.

The second product is Business Agents, initially available to eligible ecommerce and online service businesses in the United States.

When a business appears in a ChatGPT response, users can open its profile and, where available, start a conversation with its agent. They can ask about products, compare alternatives or clarify commercial terms.

Businesses provide the information and instructions, test the responses and decide when to publish the agent. The resulting conversation is clearly identified as an AI interaction representing the company. It remains separate from ChatGPT's independent answers.

Operational capabilities are still limited. According to OpenAI's documentation, the current version cannot complete purchases, make bookings or check order status. It can direct users to the business website to complete those activities. It also cannot access the capabilities of a company's separate ChatGPT plugins.

Businesses may sponsor their agents and use them as destinations for ChatGPT Ads. Sponsored experiences must be labeled and remain separate from the assistant's independent responses.

Business Hub and Business Agents address two different stages: maintaining up-to-date company information and allowing interested users to explore that information through conversation.

For businesses, this creates another customer-facing channel to maintain. Product details, commercial terms, availability and answers to common questions need to remain consistent with the company's website and internal systems.

In its current form, a Business Agent is not equivalent to an operational integration with a CRM, ERP or order management system. A conversation can support a customer's decision, but completing business transactions still happens outside the agent.

Availability also differs between the two products. Eligible companies in supported markets can claim their profiles, while Business Agents initially target the United States. Additional restrictions apply to claiming local business listings.

OpenAI plans to expand the products to more markets and business categories, but has not announced a specific timeline. It remains unclear how much these features will affect business discovery or measurable commercial outcomes.