OpenAI Explores New ChatGPT Subscription Models: Weekly and Lifetime Options on the Horizon

ChatGPT may be preparing to offer weekly or lifetime subscriptions for your AI fix

Monthly subscriptions are the only options currently available OpenAI has to pay for its melting GPUs somehow, and it seems the ChatGPT developer is exploring new subscription options to encourage more people to start paying for AI text, coding, and image generation. As spotted by tipster @M1Astra, the latest ChatGPT app builds include mentions of weekly, annual, and lifetime subscriptions, alongside the current monthly one. The team at Android Authority found the same references in the latest ChatGPT app for Android. The decision-makers at ChatGPT could change their minds before any of this goes live of course, and we've heard nothing official about this yet. But it makes sense that OpenAI would want to offer subscribers more flexibility to encourage extra sign-ups. There is a key piece of information missing here: how much these subscriptions would cost. Right now, you can either pay $20 (about £15 / AU$31) each month for a Plus subscription, or $200 (about £150 / AU$312) a month for ChatGPT Pro. Of these new subscription options, the weekly deal seems the most appealing. It would help you quickly complete a project or generate an image gallery before having to go back to the usage restrictions of the free tier. A lifetime subscription would be a real surprise - it's not something we tend to see much of elsewhere with high-profile software and services, and it's difficult to calculate the ongoing costs of AI processing and hardware across the decades to come. What we do know is that running AI models is a very, very expensive business, and so far OpenAI has spent a lot more money on ChatGPT than it's made back. Getting more people to part with their cash is one way of fixing that. We've also seen upgrades to the shopping capabilities of ChatGPT in recent days, which is another potential money-spinner: ChatGPT guides you towards the perfect coffee maker, and gets a cut of the purchase price in return.

OpenAI Might Introduce Weekly and Lifetime ChatGPT Subscriptions

OpenAI has not officially revealed any information about the new plans OpenAI might be working on introducing more duration-based subscription plans. A tipster shared strings of code from the ChatGPT app and found mentions of weekly and lifetime subscriptions for the artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot. These tiers could be part of the ChatGPT Plus plan. Notably, the pricing details of the tiers are currently unclear. The San Francisco-based AI firm has not officially revealed any details about any new subscription plans. Notably, in December 2024, the company introduced the Pro subscription tier, which is priced at $200 (roughly Rs. 17,000) a month. In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), AI tipster M1 (M1Astra) shared strings of code from the latest build of the ChatGPT app. The code revealed details about possible subscription plans the company might be considering. Gadgets 360 staff members were not able to verify the information shared in the leak. Based on a screenshot shared by the tipster, the strings appear to represent the ChatGPT Plus subscription onboarding page. This is the page users see when they tap on the "Get Plus" option on the mobile and desktop app. This page currently allows users to purchase a monthly subscription for $20 (roughly Rs. 1,700) a month, or opt for an annual plan. However, in the strings of code, there are mentions of weekly and lifetime plans. There is no other detail mentioned, and the pricing remains unknown at this time. Additionally, there is no confirmation from the AI firm about any new upcoming subscription plans. There is a possibility that these plans are merely fillers and are not intended to be shown on the front-end. But the possibility that the company is considering these options cannot be ruled out. A weekly plan is more realistic since it offers more flexibility to users who want access to the premium feature for a temporary period. The target demographic for this would include students and professionals just starting their careers, or hobbyists interested in trying out new features. A lifetime subscription, on the other hand, is unusual. Not only is fixing the price for a growing platform and technology difficult, considering the exponentially increasing processing power with each generation of GPT models further complicates the matter. Additionally, even if the company could figure out a way to evaluate a lifetime subscription, finding sizeable users willing to pay the sum might be difficult. It needs to be said that these are mere speculations, and OpenAI could have different plans. For that, we will have to wait for an official statement from the AI firm.