OpenAI Targets Asian Market with Budget ChatGPT Go Plan

OpenAI has significantly broadened the reach of its budget-friendly ChatGPT Go plan, making it available in 16 additional Asian countries. The plan, which costs under $5 per month, is a key part of the company’s strategy to grow its user base in Asia, a market poised for major growth.

Expanding the Reach of ChatGPT Go

The new expansion now covers the following locations:

• Afghanistan
• Bangladesh
• Bhutan
• Brunei Darussalam
• Cambodia
• Laos
• Malaysia
• Maldives
• Myanmar
• Nepal
• Pakistan
• The Philippines
• Sri Lanka
• Thailand
• East Timor
• Vietnam

To reduce financial friction for local users, OpenAI is accepting payment in local currency in five of these markets: Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Pakistan. In the other countries, subscriptions are billed in U.S. dollars at approximately $5, with the final cost varying based on local taxes.

What Do You Get with ChatGPT Go

ChatGPT Go offers a substantial upgrade over the free version. Subscribers benefit from raised daily limits for messages and increased quotas for image generation. The plan also allows more file and image uploads per day.

More importantly, ChatGPT Go provides twice the memory of the free tier. This allows the AI to hold more context from a conversation, leading to more personalized and relevant replies.

A Strategy for Regional Growth

This expansion follows a phased rollout in the region. OpenAI first launched the ChatGPT Go tier in India in August, followed by Indonesia in September. The results have been promising. Since the India launch, the number of paid subscribers there has doubled. Furthermore, OpenAI reports that weekly active users in Southeast Asia have grown by as much as four times.

The Growing AI Rivalry with Google

OpenAI’s expansion is happening amidst a clear rivalry with Google. In September, Google launched its Google AI Plus in Indonesia and quickly expanded it to more than 40 countries.

Google’s Plus tier offers access to its powerful Gemini 2.5 Pro model and bundles creative tools like Flow for design, Whisk for image remixing, and Veo 3 Fast for video creation. With 200GB of cloud storage included and similar pricing, both companies are now in direct competition for these price-conscious markets.

The Bigger Picture from DevDay 2025

The timing of this move aligns with major announcements from OpenAI's DevDay 2025 event in San Francisco. CEO Sam Altman revealed that ChatGPT has reached 800 million weekly active users worldwide, a significant jump from 700 million in August.

A more transformative announcement was that OpenAI will now allow third-party apps to run directly inside ChatGPT, effectively turning the chatbot into an app platform. Early partners include major names like Spotify, Zillow, and Coursera. Nick Turley, head of ChatGPT, elaborated on this vision:

“The evolution we’re trying to make over the next few years is one where ChatGPT itself is more like an operating system where you can come and use applications. If you want to write, there’s an app for that. If you want to code, there’s an app for that. If you want to interact with goods and services, there are applications for you.”

This strategy suggests a future where ChatGPT is the central hub for a wide range of digital tasks, as detailed in reporting from TechCrunch.

The Financial Motivation Behind Global Expansion

OpenAI's rapid growth has required massive investment. The company recently achieved a valuation of roughly $500 billion, yet it also reported a staggering $7.8 billion operating loss in the first half of 2025 due to heavy spending on AI infrastructure.

In this context, affordable plans like ChatGPT Go play a crucial strategic role. By lowering the barrier to entry, OpenAI can significantly widen its base of paying users. Over time, this approach is designed to move the company toward profitability while simultaneously scaling its global reach and solidifying its market position.