Mikkel Christensen
A major shift in how people pay for artificial intelligence could be closer than expected.
A major shift in how people pay for artificial intelligence could be closer than expected.
What is now a free or subscription-based tool may soon resemble something far more familiar.
Industry leaders are beginning to outline a future where AI becomes part of everyday essential spending.
A new pricing model
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman believes artificial intelligence will eventually be sold like a utility.
Speaking at the BlackRock Infrastructure Summit in Washington, DC, he suggested usage-based pricing could replace today’s flat subscriptions.
“Fundamentally, our business and I think the business of every other model provider is going to look like selling tokens,” Altman said.
“We see a future where intelligence is a utility like electricity or water and people buy it from us on a meter and use it for whatever they want to use it for.”
From free to metered
ChatGPT, launched in November 2022, quickly became one of the fastest-growing consumer apps, reaching over 100 million users within two months.
Today, it has around 900 million weekly active users, according to reporting from Supercar Blondie.
The platform still offers a free tier, alongside a $20-per-month subscription for more advanced features.
However, Altman’s comments point toward a model where users pay based on how much AI they consume.
He also warned that supply constraints could affect pricing, noting that if demand cannot be met, access may become limited or more expensive.
Infrastructure race
To support growing demand, AI companies are rapidly expanding infrastructure.
Data centers are being built at scale to handle the computing power required for advanced models.
Ensuring enough capacity is now a central challenge for firms like OpenAI, as usage continues to surge globally.
Industry-wide vision
Altman is not alone in predicting major changes. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang recently outlined a future where AI agents become part of the workforce.
“In 10 years, we will hopefully have 75,000 employees, as small as possible, as big as necessary,” he said.
“They’re going to be super busy. Those 75,000 employees will be working with 7.5 million agents.”
He added, “I wouldn’t be surprised if you license some and you hire some, depending on the quality and depending on the deep expertise.”
A shifting landscape
These projections suggest AI could become deeply embedded in both daily life and business operations. From personal use to enterprise systems, the way people access and pay for intelligence may change significantly.
If current trends continue, AI may soon move from optional tool to essential service.
Sources: Supercar Blondie
