Finally, OpenAI loses money on its ChatGPT-Pro subscription

Last December 6, OpenAI launched ChatGPT-Proan expensive subscription service (200 dollars per month) allowing access to a boosted version of ChatGPT o1. With more than a month of hindsight, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman makes an observation: despite this very high price, ChatGPT Pro is losing money for the company. He announced it on X (formerly Twitter): “crazy thing: we are currently losing money on the OpenAI Pro subscription“. Then he gives a simple reason for this loss of money: “subscribers use it much more than expected“.

He then indicates that he was the main person responsible for choosing such a price for the Pro subscription. “I chose the price personally, and I thought we were going to make money” added Sam Altman subsequently on the same platform. Overall, this unusual fact is quite representative of the management of OpenAI, which still does not make a profit, and even tends to lose money generally.

OpenAI struggles to make money

Since its creation, OpenAI has raised more than $20 billion in various funding. Except that last year, OpenAI showed a loss of 5 billion dollars against 3.7 billion dollars in turnover. There was even a time when ChatGPT cost OpenAI around $700,000 per day. Thus, despite a very high subscription price (200 dollars per month), the fact that it is so popular with those who have given in makes it a tool whose profitability once again leaves something to be desired. Moreover, very recently, OpenAI admitted to requiring more capital than expected, and thus intends to raise even more investments in the future. In the background, the possibility of increasing the price of various term subscriptions (and not just ChatGPT Pro).