OpenAI has officially expanded its ChatGPT Go Plan—a low-cost subscription priced under $5—to 16 new countries across Asia, signaling the company’s intent to dominate emerging AI markets.
The plan is now available in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, East Timor, and Vietnam.
In nations like Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Pakistan, users can now pay in local currencies. For other regions, the ChatGPT Go Plan remains priced in USD at roughly $5, with minor variations based on local taxes and conversion rates.
What ChatGPT Go Offers
The ChatGPT Go Plan provides users with higher daily limits on messages, image generation, and file uploads—along with double the memory of the free version. This expanded memory enables more personalized responses and smoother AI interactions, giving users a taste of premium performance without the high cost.
OpenAI said the move follows a fourfold increase in weekly active users across Southeast Asia, fueled by growing demand for AI-powered productivity tools. The plan first launched in India in August, followed by Indonesia in September, where OpenAI reported a doubling of paid subscribers.
OpenAI vs Google: The Battle for Affordable AI
The expansion intensifies the ongoing race between OpenAI and Google to make AI chatbot subscriptions more accessible worldwide.
Google recently rolled out its Google AI Plus plan in Indonesia, expanding to over 40 countries. Priced similarly to the ChatGPT Go Plan, Google’s offering grants users access to Gemini 2.5 Pro, its most advanced AI model, along with creative tools for image, design, and video generation—and 200GB of cloud storage.
OpenAI’s Global Growth Strategy
The expansion comes shortly after OpenAI’s DevDay 2025 in San Francisco, where CEO Sam Altman revealed that ChatGPT now has 800 million weekly active users, up from 700 million in August.
The company also introduced a major platform update, turning ChatGPT into an AI app ecosystem. Users can now access mini applications directly within ChatGPT, in partnership with major brands like Spotify, Zillow, and Coursera.
“We envision ChatGPT becoming more like an operating system,” said Nick Turley, Head of ChatGPT. “If you want to write, code, or shop—all of it will happen inside ChatGPT.”
Balancing Growth and Profitability
Despite its skyrocketing user base and a reported $500 billion valuation, OpenAI continues to face steep infrastructure costs. The company reportedly incurred a $7.8 billion operating loss in the first half of 2025 due to massive investments in AI training and server infrastructure.
Affordable tiers like the ChatGPT Go Plan are seen as key to achieving profitability while expanding OpenAI’s reach in price-sensitive Asian markets. With both OpenAI and Google pushing aggressively into the region, Asia has become the new battleground for affordable generative AI adoption.
The ChatGPT Go Plan expansion marks OpenAI’s boldest move yet to capture Asia’s fast-growing AI user base. By pricing the plan below $5, offering localized payments, and introducing smarter features, OpenAI is making generative AI more accessible—while strengthening its foothold in a region set to define the next wave of AI growth.