Japanese leader Ishiba vows to remain despite speculation, says he will focus on new US trade deal

TOKYO (AP) — Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Wednesday vowed to remain in power to oversee the implementation of a new Japan-U.S. tariff agreement, despite media speculation and growing calls for him to resign after a historic defeat of his governing party.

Ishiba met with heavyweights from his Liberal Democratic Party, or LDP, and former Prime Ministers Taro Aso, Fumio Kishida and Yoshihide Suga at party headquarters.

He told reporters afterward that they didn't discuss his resignation or a new party leadership contest, but only the election results, voters’ dissatisfaction and the urgent need to avoid party discord.

Despite his business-as-usual demeanor, Ishiba is under increasing pressure to bow out after the LDP and junior coalition partner Komeito lost their majority in Sunday's election in the 248-member upper house, the smaller and less powerful of Japan's two-chamber parliament, shaking his grip on power.

It came after a loss in the more powerful lower house in October, and so his coalition now lacks a majority in both houses of parliament, making it even more difficult for his government to pass policies and worsening Japan's political instability.

Ishiba says he intends to stay on to tackle pressing challenges, including tariff talks with the U.S., so as not to create a political vacuum despite calls from inside and outside his party for a quick resignation.

Ishiba “keeps saying he is staying on. What was the public's verdict in the election all about?" said Yuichiro Tamaki, head of the surging Democratic Party for the People, or DPP.

At the LDP, a group of younger lawmakers led by Yasutaka Nakasone started a petition drive seeking Ishiba's early resignation and renewal of party leadership.

“We all have a sense of crisis and think the election results were ultimatum from the voters,” he said.

Japanese media reported that Ishiba is expected to soon announce plans to step down in August.

The conservative Yomiuri newspaper said in an extra edition on Wednesday that Ishiba had decided to announce his resignation by the end of July after receiving a detailed report from his chief trade negotiator, Ryosei Akazawa, on the impact of the U.S. tariffs on the Japanese economy, paving the way for a new party leader.

Ishiba denied the report and said that he wants to focus on the U.S. trade deal, which covers more than 4,000 goods affecting many Japanese producers and industries. He welcomed the new agreement, which places tariffs at 15% on Japanese cars and other goods imported into the U.S. from Japan, down from the initial 25%.

Still, local media are already speculating about possible successors. Among them are ultraconservative former Economic Security Minister Sanae Takaichi, who lost to Ishiba in September. Another conservative ex-minister, Takayuki Kobayashi, and Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, the son of former popular Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, are also seen as potential challengers.

In Sunday's election, voters frustrated with price increases exceeding the pace of wage hikes, especially younger people who have long felt ignored by the ruling government's focus on senior voters, rapidly turned to the emerging conservative DPP and right-wing populist Sanseito party.

None of the opposition parties have shown interest in forming a full-fledged alliance with the governing coalition, but they have said they are open to cooperating on policy.

People expressed mixed reaction to Ishiba, as his days seem to be numbered.

Kentaro Nakamura, 53, said that he thought it's time for Ishiba to go, because he lacked consistency and did poorly in the election.

“The (election) result was so bad and I thought it would not be appropriate for him to stay on," Nakamura said. "I thought it was just a matter of time.”

But Isamu Kawana, a Tokyo resident in his 70s, was more sympathetic and said if it wasn't Ishiba who was elected prime minister last year, the result would have been the same.

“I think he got the short end of the stick," Kawana said.

Reeno Hashimoto contributed to this report.

A staff member distributes an extra edition of the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper reporting that President Donald Trump announced a trade framework with Japan on Tuesday, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to the media after President Donald Trump announced a trade framework with Japan, at the prime minister's office in Tokyo, Japan, Wednesday, July 23, 2025. (Kyodo News via AP)

A person receives an extra edition of the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper, with headline reading "Prime Minister Ishiba towards resignation," in Tokyo, Wednesday, July 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

A staff member distributes an extra edition of the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper, with headline reading "Prime Minister Ishiba towards resignation," Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

From left: European Council President António Costa, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hold a joint news conference after their meeting at Prime Minister Office in Tokyo, Japan, Wednesday, July 23, 2025. (David Mareuil/Pool Photo via AP)

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba attends a join press briefing with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa after their meeting at the prime minister's office in Tokyo Wednesday, July 23, 2025. (David Mareuil/Pool Photo via AP)

A staff member distributes an extra edition of the Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper reporting that President Donald Trump announced a trade framework with Japan on Tuesday, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks to the media after President Donald Trump announced a trade framework with Japan, at the prime minister's office in Tokyo, Japan, Wednesday, July 23, 2025. (Kyodo News via AP)

OpenAI says it will soon start showing advertisements to ChatGPT users who aren't paying for a premium version of the chatbot.

The artificial intelligence company said Friday it hasn't yet rolled out ads but will start testing them in the coming weeks.

It's the latest effort by the San Francisco-based company to make money from ChatGPT's more than 800 million users, most of whom get it for free.

Though valued at $500 billion, the startup loses more money than it makes and has been looking for ways to turn a profit.

“Most importantly: ads will not influence the answers ChatGPT gives you,” said Fidji Simo, the company’s CEO of applications, in a social media post Friday.

OpenAI said the digital ads will appear at the bottom of ChatGPT's answers “when there’s a relevant sponsored product or service based on your current conversation.”

The ads “will be clearly labeled and separated from the organic answer,” the company said.

Two of OpenAI’s rivals, Google and Meta, have dominated digital advertising for years and already incorporate ads into some of their AI features.

Originally founded as a nonprofit with a mission to safely build better-than-human AI, OpenAI last year reorganized its ownership structure and converted its business into a public benefit corporation. It said Friday that its pursuit of advertising will be “always in support” of its original mission to ensure its AI technology benefits humanity.

But introducing personalized ads starts OpenAI “down a risky path” previously taken by social media companies, said Miranda Bogen of the Center for Democracy and Technology.

“People are using chatbots for all sorts of reasons, including as companions and advisors," said Bogen, director of CDT’s AI Governance Lab. “There’s a lot at stake when that tool tries to exploit users’ trust to hawk advertisers’ goods.”

OpenAI makes some money from paid subscriptions but needs more revenue to pay for its more than $1 trillion in financial obligations for the computer chips and data centers that power its AI services. The risk that OpenAI won’t make enough money to fulfill the expectations of backers like Oracle and Nvidia has amplified investor concerns about an AI bubble.

“It is clear to us that a lot of people want to use a lot of AI and don’t want to pay, so we are hopeful a business model like this can work,” said OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in a post Friday on social platform X. He added that he likes the ads on Meta's Instagram because they show him things he wouldn't have found otherwise.

OpenAI claims it won't use a user's personal information or prompts to collect data for ads, but the question is “for how long,” said Paddy Harrington, an analyst at research group Forrester.

“Free services are never actually free and these public AI platforms need to generate revenue,” Harrington said. “Which leads to the adage: If the service is free, you’re the product.”

FILE - The OpenAI logo is displayed on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen with output from ChatGPT, March 21, 2023, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)