OpenAI Halts New Pro Subscriptions After Astra Launch

OpenAI has paused new subscriptions to its $200 monthly Pro plan, citing the pressure generated by Astra. The company has not provided a timeline for reopening, but access remains available through the API and the Go and Plus plans, while Astra continues its rollout.

Astra launched on September 3, deployment ongoing across multiple offerings

Astra was launched on September 3, and its deployment is ongoing in OpenAI's Pro, Plus, Enterprise, and Business offerings. According to the company, this model represents a significant advancement in AI reasoning, coding, and computer usage. OpenAI also presents Astra as the beginning of the AGI era and a generational leap, which contributes to the heightened interest in this model.

Suspension of new Pro subscriptions, duration not announced

OpenAI has temporarily suspended new subscriptions to its Pro plan, priced at $200 per month, and has disabled sign-ups at this level. The company has not indicated how long this suspension will last, nor disclosed the number of daily sign-ups. Other offerings, including the API as well as the Go and Plus plans, remain accessible.

OpenAI attributes the pause to "unprecedented" demand for Astra

The announcement of the suspension was made on X by Thibault (Tibo) Sottiaux, product lead for Codex and ChatGPT at OpenAI. He explained that the Pro plan places the most strain on the company's infrastructure, which motivated the disabling of sign-ups at this level. Sottiaux clarified that this measure aims to preserve access for the largest number of users. As of Wednesday, he had warned that such a suspension could be decided if demand persisted. He describes the demand for Astra as "unprecedented" and states that OpenAI is mobilizing all possible resources to meet it, while emphasizing that he has never observed such a situation, even during previous phases of rapid growth. The priority remains to maintain quality service for existing users. OpenAI had also recently increased usage limits for Codex users, suggesting that the pressure on the infrastructure is recent.