ChatGPT Surpasses This Popular Streaming Service in Paid Subscribers

OpenAI is continuing to dominate its competitors, as a recent study highlights its significant success in attracting paid subscribers for ChatGPT Plus.

According to a report by Futuresearch, OpenAI leads the AI industry in popularity and profitability, boasting an estimated annual recurring revenue of $3.4 billion. Remarkably, about 55% of this revenue, or $1.9 billion, comes from its 7.7 million ChatGPT Plus subscribers, who pay $20 a month for the service. Additionally, 21% (around $714 million) originates from the 1.2 million ChatGPT Enterprise subscribers who pay $50 monthly. The AI's API contributes only 15% (approximately $510 million), while the remaining 8% (around $290 million) comes from its 980,000 ChatGPT Teams subscribers at $25 each month. Overall, OpenAI is estimated to have around 9.88 million monthly subscribers.

To put this in perspective, OpenAI’s subscriber base is nearly 2 million more than the reported 8 million subscribers of YouTube TV, the fourth-largest cable network in the U.S. In contrast, Disney+ experienced over 10 million sign-ups on its launch day. Nonetheless, OpenAI’s achievement in capturing such a large subscription base, especially at $20 per month, is noteworthy.

Given this remarkable revenue stream, one may wonder how OpenAI is utilizing its funds. A recent Bloomberg report sheds light on this question.

OpenAI has created a five-tier system to evaluate its AI systems’ capabilities, aligning with its goal of achieving Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) within the next decade. This new scale was shared internally with employees and investors recently.

The company's charter describes AGI as “highly autonomous systems that outperform humans at most economically valuable work — benefiting all of humanity.” OpenAI aims to build safe and beneficial AGI directly but also recognizes that its mission may be considered fulfilled if its efforts help others to reach this milestone.

The scale consists of five levels. Level 1 includes AI systems that engage in basic conversational interaction—essentially standard chatbots. Level 2, which OpenAI believes we are nearing, encompasses “Reasoners,” capable of solving problems at a doctorate-level proficiency. Evidence of this can be seen as AI increasingly passes state bar and medical school exams.

Level 3 categorizes “Agents,” AI that can operate on the user's behalf over multiple days and systems—think of a more advanced version of Apple Intelligence. Level 4, designated for “Innovators,” describes AI that can devise its own novel solutions to problems, while Level 5 refers to “Organizations,” meaning AI that can perform tasks equivalent to an entire human workforce. OpenAI emphasizes that this classification is still in preliminary stages and subject to future adjustments.

The concept of interacting with AI as intelligent and capable as its creators has existed since the advent of computing, with significant breakthroughs always seeming “a few years” away. However, the launch of ChatGPT in 2022 has notably accelerated the timeline for realizing that goal. Shane Legg, co-founder of Google’s DeepMind and Lead AGI researcher, shared with Time that he estimates a 50% chance of achieving AGI by 2028. Meanwhile, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei is more optimistic, predicting AGI within the next 24 months.

Given its current trajectory, OpenAI seems poised to reach this ambitious goal.