India has become ChatGPT’s largest market, fueled by its huge digitally connected population and broad access to free AI services.

That growth reflects the freemium playbook: companies offer basic access for free to build user bases and gather interaction data, while paid plans promise productivity gains and help cover infrastructure costs.

Turning that reach into revenue remains difficult in a price-sensitive market, where many users are not yet convinced AI delivers enough value to pay for it.

Only a small share of users pays for advanced features, and some subscribers are experiencing sticker shock as costs rise.

The value proposition is also complicated by the fact that more AI use does not always mean greater productivity or lower costs; AI-assisted coding, for example, has sometimes cost more than human coding.

Meanwhile, the expansion of sovereign AI infrastructure will bring computing and energy expenses that need to be recouped, making free services harder to sustain.

India’s large pool of trained workers could help drive further AI innovation, even as the technology threatens to disrupt existing work.