Yesterday OpenAI launched something a lot of business owners have been waiting for. ChatGPT now has a formal way for you to claim your business, keep your information current, and see how people run into you inside the chat.
The official name is Businesses in ChatGPT. It went live in beta on November 10, 2026. The dashboard you use to manage it is called Business Hub.
What OpenAI announced
OpenAI says this gives companies a way to connect with the 1.2 billion people who use ChatGPT each week. Through Business Hub, an eligible business can claim its listing, update key details, and add a product feed with pricing and availability.
When a business appears in a ChatGPT answer, people can click through to its ChatGPT profile. Eligible U.S. ecommerce and online service businesses can also publish a Business Agent in a clearly labeled conversation, separate from ChatGPT's own answers.
Claiming your listing does not guarantee higher placement or more sales.
You can claim a business if you own it or are authorized to represent it. You do not need a ChatGPT Enterprise agreement or an ads account. Eligibility depends on industry, location, and OpenAI's verification checks. Business Agents are currently limited to eligible U.S. ecommerce and online service businesses with a website that meet OpenAI's Business Agents Policy. Shopify merchants can connect their store from Business Hub or the Shopify admin.
Digiday reported, after a briefing with OpenAI's VP of monetization, Benji Shomair, that claiming a profile and publishing an agent are free at launch. Shomair left open the possibility that OpenAI could charge later.
How this compares to Google Business Profile
Google Business Profile is still the listing that shows up in Google Search and Maps. For a Cincinnati or Dayton business, that profile is not optional.
Businesses in ChatGPT is a listing inside ChatGPT. You can keep your category, website, address or service area, hours, contact details, logo, and cover photo current. After verification, Business Hub shows mentions, website clicks, and discovery topics over the past 28 days.
This does not replace Google. Local stores and restaurants can currently claim only an existing U.S. listing, and claiming is initially limited to eligible businesses with a website. There is no confirmed public review system like Google's. A Business Agent can explain products and policies and send people to your website. It cannot complete purchases, make bookings, or check an order.
You want both listings to be accurate and consistent.
How to claim and verify your business
These steps come from OpenAI's help article, Setting up your business on ChatGPT.
- Sign in to ChatGPT, open Business Hub from the sidebar, and search for your business by name.
- Select the matching listing and confirm the ChatGPT account you will use to manage it. If you received a claim invitation, open that personal link. If you see Contact support, the listing is locked.
- Verify the claim with a business phone code, a business email code, a DNS TXT record on your website domain, or a Shopify store connection.
- Wait for OpenAI to email its decision or a request for more information. A pending claim is not an approved profile.
- Complete identity verification with Persona before you can publish changes, connect a product feed, view insights, or create an eligible agent. Have a government-issued ID, business registration details, and proof you can represent the business. The blue check appears after this step is approved, not when you first submit a claim.
- Update your website, description, category, logo, policies, cover photo, and other details. OpenAI reviews changes, and they can take time to appear.
- If you sell products, connect a Shopify feed, upload a CSV that follows OpenAI's specification, or provide a hosted feed URL. A feed does not publish an agent or guarantee recommendations.
- If you are eligible, preview a Business Agent with questions customers actually ask, and publish it only when the answers are right.
If the profile is already claimed, you can dispute ownership from the profile menu. The admin can later add teammates or an agency in Business Hub.
What information to prepare before you start
Get this in order first so verification goes more smoothly and the listing matches the rest of your online presence.
- Legal or public business name, written the same way as on your website and Google Business Profile
- Category, address or service area, hours, phone, and the business email you can access
- Website URL and a short, accurate description of what you offer
- Logo and cover photo you have the rights to use
- Delivery and return policies, plus a product feed, if you sell products
- Government-issued ID, business registration information, and proof you can represent the business
Name, address, and phone consistency still matters, because ChatGPT may also use other sources. Keep your real reviews in good shape on Google and other sites customers use, and do not add fabricated reviews to your ChatGPT profile. OpenAI's policy forbids that.
How this ties into AI search visibility
At Summit Studio, we spend a lot of time on how a business shows up when someone asks ChatGPT or another assistant for a recommendation. A claimed listing is now part of that work, not the whole job. Your website, service pages, and other listings still matter. Claiming the profile lets you manage what you submit. It does not let you take over the recommendation.
Better information is still worth providing. In a press briefing reported by Digiday, Shomair said claiming a business should not change how frequently it appears. He also said clearer information could help ChatGPT surface a business in more relevant conversations. You are not buying a ranking boost. You are reducing the chance that ChatGPT describes you with outdated facts.
Verified businesses can now see first-party mention and website-click counts over the past 28 days, plus discovery topics. For an online business, a mention counts when ChatGPT references the website, not just the brand name. For a local business, it counts when ChatGPT shows a result for that location. Website clicks are recorded clicks on links in ChatGPT, not confirmed visits or purchases.
Questions we are already getting
Will claiming my business make ChatGPT recommend me more often? No, not as a guarantee. OpenAI says claiming lets you manage the information you provide. It does not guarantee increased visibility.
Do I still need Google Business Profile? Yes. Treat this as an additional listing, not a replacement.
Can a local store or restaurant claim a listing? Sometimes. OpenAI says local stores and restaurants can currently claim only an existing U.S. listing. If you cannot find yours, you may not be able to add it yet.
Is a Business Agent required? No. After verification is approved, you can manage your information and use insights without publishing an agent or running ads.
Is this free? You do not need an ads account or a ChatGPT Enterprise agreement to claim an eligible business. Digiday reported that Business Hub and Business Agents are free at launch, and that OpenAI has not ruled out charging later.
How long until my updates show up in ChatGPT? OpenAI reviews and publishes changes. Saving a change does not mean every answer will reflect it immediately.
If you want help getting this set up
If you would rather not spend the afternoon in DNS records and identity checks, we can help. At HDM and Summit Studio, we can claim and verify the listing, line it up with your Google Business Profile and website, and, if you are eligible, help you review a Business Agent before it goes live. Get in touch if you want us to take a look.
