OpenAI is planning a $100 ChatGPT Pro Lite tier (www.techradar.com)

OpenAI is reportedly planning to introduce a new subscription tier called ChatGPT Pro Lite at approximately $100 per month, aimed at bridging the gap between the existing ChatGPT Plus at $20 and ChatGPT Pro at $200. This potential tier, discovered in recent code by Testing Catalog, is significant for the AI/ML community as it addresses the growing demand for more robust AI capabilities without the steep price tag of the Pro version. While details on what Pro Lite will offer remain sparse, it is expected to provide users with better access to advanced models, faster inference speeds, and higher daily limits compared to Plus, which currently imposes stricter rate limits and is prone to capacity issues during peak times. The introduction of a Pro Lite tier is a strategic move by OpenAI to manage its rising compute and energy costs driven by an expanding user base and heavy workloads. By offering a mid-tier subscription, OpenAI can better distribute the infrastructure demands of power users engaged in demanding tasks such as coding and research, while also positioning itself competitively against offerings from other AI companies like Google and Anthropic. As the AI landscape evolves with increasingly complex systems, this subscription structure could serve as a model for sustainable revenue generation, enabling continuous innovation within AI technologies.