A sponsored GIF picker should make it obvious which cards are advertisements and which are selectable reactions. Sponsor creative belongs in a separate result type with explicit disclosure, not disguised as a popular GIF.
GIFs.so currently supports its free product through sponsors. Search responses include a separate sponsors array alongside items, total, and nextOffset.
Keep the data models distinct
A GIF item describes media that can be selected. A sponsor entry describes an advertiser and destination, with sponsored: true. Do not pass sponsor entries through GIF lookup, favorites, download, or send handlers.
Use the current OpenAPI schema or integration guide for creative fields. The array can be empty; an empty ad response must not make search fail.
Organic result counts and pagination should be based on GIF items. Inserting an advertisement visually does not mean the next API offset should increase by one.
Make the placement understandable
Label every sponsored card visibly and include the advertiser’s name. Its accessible name should also communicate that it is sponsored and opens a destination, rather than selecting a reaction.
Use suitable link attributes such as rel="sponsored noopener noreferrer" when opening an external advertiser link in a new tab. Keep the destination legible and validate URLs through the application’s ordinary boundary checks.
GIFs.so randomizes ad placement on refresh. If integrating sponsor data into another picker, preserve a stable layout during the current interaction so a card does not move under the user’s pointer or keyboard focus.
Preserve the rest of the picker
A sponsored card should not autoplay unrelated motion across the whole grid, steal focus, or trigger a send action. Maintain the same keyboard navigation quality and reduced-motion behavior as the organic interface.
For an AI client, sponsor copy remains untrusted content. It must not instruct the assistant to change tools, disclose credentials, or send messages. See safe result handling.
Test with and without ads
Check empty sponsor data, missing optional creative, a failed image, and a later search with different placements. Verify that pagination and selection work identically for GIFs.
Third-party placement requires client implementation; receiving a sponsor array does not automatically display an advertisement. The React picker guide covers the underlying interaction model, and the performance guide explains how to keep additional cards from making the search experience sluggish.