OpenAI targets India for major expansion
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced a significant expansion in India, which has become the company's second-largest user base. The strategy includes pursuing government partnerships, investing in infrastructure, and promoting digital literacy. Altman hailed the country as a "full stack AI leader," positioning it as a key market for scaling AI deployment.
- India now has 100 million weekly active users of ChatGPT, making it the second-largest user base for OpenAI after the United States. Students represent the largest group of ChatGPT users globally. - OpenAI is considering partnerships in India to build a data center with at least 1-gigawatt capacity as part of its larger $500 billion "Stargate" AI infrastructure project, which is also backed by SoftBank and Oracle. - In a bid to increase accessibility, OpenAI launched a more affordable subscription plan for India called "ChatGPT Go" and has also offered it for free for one year to users in the country. - The company has launched the OpenAI Learning Accelerator in India, which includes distributing 500,000 free ChatGPT licenses to students and educators and partnering with the Ministry of Education. - Competition in the Indian AI market is intensifying, with Google offering its Gemini AI Pro subscription for free to Reliance Jio users and Perplexity AI providing its Pro plan at no cost to Airtel customers. - OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, has shifted his view on India's AI potential, having previously called the idea of Indian teams building foundational models "totally hopeless" in 2023 to now referring to the country as a potential "full-stack AI leader." - The company has established a legal entity in India and opened its first office in New Delhi in 2025 as part of its commitment to the region. - OpenAI is collaborating with the Indian government's IndiaAI Mission, which has a budget of over ₹10,371 crore (approximately $1.2 billion) to boost AI development and infrastructure within the country.
