Social media is abuzz with claims that ChatGPT Plus will be made free for all UAE residents. This stems from multiple reports suggesting that the UAE has become the first country to offer premium features of the app at no cost to “every resident and citizen.”
Here’s what we know so far about the claims and the facts behind them.
ChatGPT Plus is a subscription plan that provides enhanced access to the ChatGPT web app for $20/month (around Dh72). It offers benefits such as access to the latest GPT-4o model, faster response times, and priority access during high-demand periods.
News outlets reporting on the alleged free access have not cited a direct source for their claims. The assumption appears to be based on a line from OpenAI’s press release announcing Stargate UAE:
“Under the partnership, the UAE will become the first country in the world to enable ChatGPT nationwide—giving people across the country the ability to access OpenAI's technology.”
However, this statement does not explicitly say that ChatGPT Plus will be made available for free to all residents. Khaleej Times has reached out to OpenAI and G42 for clarification.
According to OpenAI, the free version provides access to GPT-4o (with some limitations), file uploads, voice, and other tools though with usage limits and reduced access during peak times. Premium subscribers enjoy extended limits, higher availability, and access to advanced features.
When asked, ChatGPT referenced various media reports claiming its premium version will be made available to all UAE residents for free. However, when prompted to confirm whether OpenAI has announced this, the chatbot clarified: “While there have been reports of a partnership between OpenAI and the UAE government to build a massive AI data center named Stargate UAE in Abu Dhabi, the details regarding free access to ChatGPT Plus for all residents have not been confirmed by OpenAI. The official ChatGPT pricing page and help center do not mention any such initiative for the UAE. Therefore, unless OpenAI officially announces such an initiative, ChatGPT Plus remains a paid service in the UAE.”
G42, OpenAI, Oracle, NVIDIA, SoftBank Group, and Cisco recently announced a major partnership to build Stargate UAE — a next-generation AI infrastructure cluster based in the newly established 5-gigawatt UAE-US AI Campus in Abu Dhabi.
This marks the first international deployment of Stargate, OpenAI’s AI infrastructure platform.
According to OpenAI, the partnership includes “dual investments”:
A 1GW Stargate UAE cluster in Abu Dhabi, with 200MW expected to go live in 2026
UAE investment into U.S.-based Stargate infrastructure, building on the US-UAE AI Acceleration Partnership announced during President Trump’s visit
OpenAI says the collaboration will help the UAE leverage its AI tools across critical sectors such as government, energy, healthcare, education, and transportation, driving innovation and economic growth.
Stargate UAE is expected to deliver regional AI infrastructure and compute capacity to serve up to half the world’s population within a 2,000-mile radius.
