For many years, American tech companies have been using India’s huge and growing Internet user base to drive their growth. OpenAI is no exception. But while the AI lab claims that India is one of the fastest growing markets for ChatGPT, third-party data suggests that OpenAI may not be able to turn this momentum into revenue.
According to the analytics company SensorTower, since 2023, users in India have spent $8 million on ChatGPT subscriptions through in-app purchases. This amount does not include purchases made through the ChatGPT web app. But it should be noted that this is only a fraction of the $330 million that SensorTower estimates US users have spent on the ChatGPT app.
One likely factor is the lack of local pricing for India. OpenAI’s cheapest ChatGPT plan in the country costs $20 (over Rs. 1,700) per month, which is considered an expensive digital subscription in India.
When we contacted OpenAI representatives, they did not share specific details about their growth in India, but pointed us to a recent post by COO Brad Lightkep on X, which claims that India is the fastest growing market for ChatGPT.
Despite the low level of revenue, India could be a major growth driver for OpenAI. CEO Sam Altman recently expressed his desire for OpenAI to become a platform with several billion users. Access to India’s more than 950 million internet users could help accelerate this effort.
OpenAI apparently thinks so. Reportedly, the company is trying to strike an alliance with Reliance Jio, one of India’s largest mobile operators, to introduce ChatGPT to more users.
Meanwhile, ChatGPT continues to grow organically in India.
According to app tracker Appfigures, more than 20% of ChatGPT’s Android app downloads this year have come from India. At least part of this growth is due to the recently released updated image generator in ChatGPT, which has gone viral for its ability to create realistic Ghibli-style art.
For context, ChatGPT has over 500 million weekly users worldwide.
