“"India is not just a market for AI. It is the proving ground where scalp meets real-world innovation.” - Satya Nadella, CEO Microsoft
India the biggest test bed of global AI
OpenAI’s offering 'ChatGPT Go' free for a year in India turned the country into its largest testing ground. Launched on 4 November 2025, the offer pushed the app to the number one spot on the Google Play Store, where it stayed for over a month. This surge highlights India’s massive appetite for AI tools. How sustainable or profitable this would be, remains to be seen.
Free access and download rankings
While ChatGPT dominated overall downloads, Google Gemini was at the number two position, and Perplexity tumbled sharply from rank 112 to 166 by 24 November, 2025. Grok and DeepSeek also moved around the charts as users explored multiple low-cost or free options in the rapidly expanding AI app ecosystem.
What about revenues
Despite huge downloads, ChatGPT slipped in the top grossing rankings, falling from number five to number eleven within weeks. The drop raises a key question about whether users who flock to free AI tools will ultimately pay for subscriptions once introductory offers end. That's a dilemma many foreign firms have faced in India.
AI players compete for Indian users
India’s fast-growing AI user base has attracted global players who see long-term value in establishing early loyalty. OpenAI, Google, Perplexity, and Elon Musk’s Grok are all experimenting with pricing models and limited free access. Their strategies reveal a broader race to capture a market defined by price sensitivity and high engagement. As AI apps become part of everyday digital life, companies are betting that India’s vast population will eventually turn into paying customers. 2025 will test this hypothesis.
Summary
OpenAI’s free year of ChatGPT Go has made India its largest live experiment, boosting downloads but raising questions about long-term revenue. Competing AI apps are reshuffling in the rankings as companies test strategies to win India’s large, value-driven user base.
Food for thought
Will Indian users shift from free trials to paid AI tools once the introductory period ends?
AI concept to learn: AI adoption behavior
AI adoption behavior refers to how users begin using, explore, and eventually decide whether to stick with an AI product. It helps explain why some people try free AI tools but hesitate to pay later. Understanding this pattern is key for predicting how AI spreads across large digital markets.
[The Billion Hopes Research Team shares the latest AI updates for learning and awareness. Various sources are used. All copyrights acknowledged. This is not a professional, financial, personal or medical advice. Please consult domain experts before making decisions. Feedback welcome!]
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