It would mark three years coming October/November since the release of ChatGPT to the public. Did anyone ever think it would skyrocket in popularity, thrusting AI into the spotlight across many industries and vertical? It also set off a race for AI supremacy.
While other tech giants like Google and Meta have released Gemini and Meta AI respectively, it’s been a race to the public spotlight (not forgetting the work by Perplexity and Anthropic). Still, we can’t forget how OpenAI has spearheaded this with their first steps that drove the entire industry to follow.
More importantly, they’re expanding their reach with various partnerships focused on the Middle East and South Asia region.
Stargate UAE in Abu Dhabi
This is likely the biggest one for OpenAI, since they unveiled their strategy of setting up dedicated AI infrastructure regions around the world. Reason? Backbone of economic growth and national development in regions where they’d be implemented. This falls under the Project Stargate umbrella a.k.a OpenAI for Countries. This partnership goes both ways, with countries investing in expanding Project Stargate that also has a networked ripple effect.
The first country to avail this benefit is the UAE. The grand plan sees the implementation of a 1GW cluster in Abu Dhabi. At the initial stage, a 200MW cluster is expected to go live in 2026 per OpenAI’s announcement. In reciprocity, it brings UAE investment into US Stargate infrastructure that builds on the US-UAE AI partnerships. This has also been done in partnership with: NVIDIA, Oracle, Cisco, Softbank and UAE’s G42.
It gives the UAE first-mover advantage, having already doubling down on AI in the lead up to the news. This would help accelerate innovation and economic growth across critical verticals, while creating lasting benefits for the residents.
One more thing – It doesn’t mean that everyone in the UAE gets ChatGPT Plus for free. You’ve seen people on LinkedIn sharing it without even linking to official news sources to confirm it. However, nothing official has been stated by OpenAI nor UAE Government (sorry to engagement baited to show their ‘Linked-influence’, only to end up looking like fools).
The benefits will also extend to the surrounding countries in the region, as they stated that “Stargate UAE has the potential to provide AI infrastructure and compute capacity within a 2,000-mile radius, reaching up to half the world’s population.” If you love more reading, you can even check out their charter for security here.
OpenAI opening office in India
As a third-culture Indian, I’ve learned first hand why India has always been a major business target for tech brands. It’s been one country where people skipped desktops/laptops and jumped onto the web via smartphones.
The large population has been a user gold mine for the social media platforms (remember how YouTube and Meta doubled down after the TikTok ban in 2020). Yet, it’s also a comparatively cheap market (currency is weak as well) to help drive volume and new commercial opportunities with a vast populace.
The news of OpenAI opening a local office in New Delhi (Source: TechCrunch) is also a sign of confidence in doubling down on a major market. Plus, the usage activity of ChatGPT in India puts it in second place after the USA (Source: podcast interview).
A cheaper ChatGPT tier
As the market itself is very price-sensitive, that necessitated launching a new “ChatGPT Go” tier. It costs about $5 per month with lower limits compared to ChatGPT Plus (>$20 per month). Yet, it gives higher limits compared to the restrictions on the free tier.
While it makes it a more affordable option, ChatGPT Go is currently geo-restricted to India only. Luckily, OpenAI’s support page does state that it’s working to bring it to more markets. India is serving as the testing ground for this as they refine it before bringing it to more markets where pricing does influence an uptake to a paid tier.
Image Credit: OpenAI
