OpenAI Makes ChatGPT Go Free for a Year to All Users in India

When a global company starts giving something valuable for free, it’s not charity — it’s strategy.

OpenAI just made its ChatGPT Go plan free for one year to all users in India — a move that could quietly reshape how millions interact with AI tools every day. Starting November 4, anyone in India who signs up during the limited offer period will get 12 months of ChatGPT Go at zero cost. Even existing Go subscribers will be included automatically.

It’s not just another “free trial.” It’s a signal.

OpenAI knows India isn’t just another market — it’s the growth engine. With over 700 million smartphone users and more than a billion internet subscribers, India is where the next big wave of AI adoption will come from. And while the U.S. leads in spending, India leads in creativity, scale, and curiosity.

ChatGPT Go, priced originally at under $5/month, launched in India in August as OpenAI’s most affordable paid plan. It offered 10x more usage than the free tier, plus image generation, file uploads, and memory-based responses that adapt to user behavior. Essentially, it was designed for those who wanted power without the price tag of ChatGPT Plus.

But India responded in a way few expected — with millions of downloads and experimentation across startups, students, creators, and small business owners. According to TechCrunch, ChatGPT saw over 29 million downloads in 90 days, yet only $3.6 million in in-app purchases. For OpenAI, that signaled one thing: users love the product, but price still matters.

Now, by removing that barrier, OpenAI might just be betting on the long game — reach first, revenue later.

As Sam Altman noted earlier this year, India is already OpenAI’s second-largest market after the U.S. The company even opened a New Delhi office in August, setting the stage for deeper localization and community engagement. And that’s not all — OpenAI’s DevDay Exchange conference in Bengaluru on November 4 is expected to reveal more India-specific updates for developers and enterprises.

This move also mirrors a pattern among AI rivals. Perplexity AI recently joined forces with Airtel to give 360 million users access to Perplexity Pro for free, and Google rolled out its AI Pro plan for Indian students — again, at no cost.

So, what’s really happening here?
The AI race in India is no longer about who has the best model. It’s about who becomes indispensable in daily life.

By giving ChatGPT Go free for a year, OpenAI is doing what successful companies always do: build habit, create loyalty, and let users experience value before asking for payment. Once millions of Indians get used to creating, learning, and building with ChatGPT Go, they won’t want to go back.

And that’s how real adoption happens — not through ads or hype, but through access.

India has always been a testing ground for digital revolutions — from the rise of UPI to the smartphone boom. And now, it’s about to become the launchpad for the next wave of AI adoption.

If you haven’t tried ChatGPT Go yet, this might be the best time. Because when something this powerful becomes free — even for a year — it’s less of an offer and more of an opportunity.

💡 You can read more or sign up directly through OpenAI’s official site.

Excited for our first DevDay Exchange event in India 🇮🇳 on November 4. Ahead of that, we have some exciting updates coming for India users over the next couple of weeks. Stay tuned!

— Nick Turley (@nickaturley) October 28, 2025