In September, a report claimed OpenAI could be on the verge of hiking the subscription prices for its next-gen AI models. The damning report indicated that the hike could shoot up to $2,000 per month, receiving backlash from users indicating it would only make sense if constituted AGI as the absurd amount is a price point for an employee.
OpenAI Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Sarah Friar has seemingly corroborated the report. According to a report by Bloomberg, the executive indicated that it would make sense if the company raised the monthly subscription price to its advanced AI models for business users to match the value the system furnishes companies.
When asked about the ChatGPT maker potentially charging $2,000 per month for its AI models, the executive indicated:
“I want the door open to everything. If it’s helping me move about the world with literally a Ph.D.-level assistant for anything that I’m doing, there are certainly cases where that would make all the sense in the world.”
More money, more value
Based on OpenAI's recent launch, the company could be headed in a direction where business users may pay more for AI services. As part of its ongoing 12 days of shipmas, the ChatGPT maker launched a new subscription tier dubbed ChatGPT Pro for $200/month. The launch was received with mixed feelings. Most users indicated that the price point was exorbitant, while others didn't care as long as the model delivers.
For context, ChatGPT Pro is a new $200 monthly subscription plan with unlimited access to OpenAI o1, GPT-4o, and Advanced Voice mode. The launch of the Pro model doesn't mean OpenAI will kill support for ChatGPT Plus. Plus users will have access to the o1 model, too. The only difference is that Pro users will have a higher clearance and the ability to leverage the model's capabilities, allowing it to "think harder for the hardest problems."
OpenAI might be moving forward with its plans to hike the price for its advanced AI models. According to OpenAI CFO Friar:
“How might you have had to finance that otherwise? Would you have had to go out and hire more people? How do you think about the replacement cost to some degree, and then how do we create a fair pricing for that?”
OpenAI's new pricing model for its next-gen AI models could raise the revenue generated from its services, which could be used to meet the exorbitant cost of building its sophisticated advanced systems. This is amid bankruptcy reports, placing the ChatGPT maker between a rock and a hard place within the next 12 months, with projections of a $5 billion loss.
The AI firm evaded bankruptcy by raising $6.6 billion through funding from key investors, including Microsoft, NVIDIA, Thrive Capital, SoftBank, and more. However, OpenAI faces more critical challenges, including pressure to transform into a for-profit entity or risk refunding the money raised by investors, which could also make it susceptible to outsider interference and hostile takeovers.
