OpenAI
OpenAI is an AI research company, founded in 2015, that builds the GPT family of models and the ChatGPT apps. It's structured as a nonprofit-controlled entity, the OpenAI Foundation, which controls OpenAI Group PBC, a public benefit corporation; Microsoft holds a large minority stake. As of September 2026 the current flagship model family is GPT-6, alongside the earlier GPT-5.6 still used on some ChatGPT plans, accessed through ChatGPT (Free to Pro) and the OpenAI API.
Facts checked on against the sources listed at the end of this page.
- Pricing
- FreemiumPaid from $20 a month for ChatGPT Plus; API pricing varies by model
- Open source
- NoProprietary
- GitHub stars
- 11,206
- npm downloads a week
- 51Mup 13% on the week before
- Latest release
- v7.30.01 day ago
- Releases in 90 days
- 10about 3 a month
A good fit for
- Adding a general-purpose language model to a product through the OpenAI API
- Individuals and teams who want a polished chat app with voice, image generation and deep research built in
- Coding tasks through Codex, in ChatGPT or via the API
- Enterprises already on Microsoft Azure that want OpenAI models billed through that account
Not a good fit for
- Teams that want to run models on their own hardware, since OpenAI's frontier models are not open weight
- Fixed, predictable costs at high API volume, since spend scales with tokens used
- Users who want full transparency into training data or model internals
OpenAI pricing
ChatGPT has a free plan and paid individual plans (Go, Plus at $20 a month, Pro at $200 a month), plus Business and Enterprise plans for teams. The API is billed per million tokens and varies by model, with cheaper batch processing and heavily discounted cached input tokens.
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT Free | $0 | Unlimited text chats with a base model, limited uploads, image generation, voice and deep research. |
| ChatGPT Plus | $20 a month | Advanced reasoning models, expanded messaging and uploads, projects, scheduled tasks and custom GPTs. |
| ChatGPT Pro | $200 a month | 5x the usage of Plus, top-tier reasoning model access, maximum deep research and memory. |
| ChatGPT Business / Enterprise | Custom pricing | Admin controls, security and compliance features for teams. |
| API pricing | Varies by model, e.g. GPT-6 Luna from $0.10 input / $0.50 output per million tokens | Batch processing at 50% off standard rates, cached input tokens discounted 90%. |
Prices in USD, checked on 27 September 2026. Current prices on openai.com.
Main features
- ChatGPT
- Web, desktop and mobile chat app with Free, Go, Plus and Pro individual plans, plus Business and Enterprise plans for teams.
- OpenAI API
- Pay-per-token access to GPT models for developers building AI into their own applications.
- GPT-6 model family
- Multiple model sizes at different price and speed points, with GPT-6 Astra as the top reasoning tier.
- Codex
- A coding-focused model and tool, available in ChatGPT and as a specialized API model.
- Deep research
- An agentic research mode that browses and synthesizes sources into a report, available at different usage levels by plan.
- Azure OpenAI Service
- OpenAI's models are also available through Microsoft Azure, billed through an Azure account.
About OpenAI
OpenAI develops the GPT family of large language models and offers them through ChatGPT, its consumer and business chat apps, and through the OpenAI API for developers building AI into their own products. As of September 2026 GPT-6 is the current flagship model family, offered in different sizes (for example Astra, Sol and Luna) at different price and speed points, alongside continued access to the GPT-5.6 line.
OpenAI was founded in 2015 as a nonprofit AI research lab. It has since restructured: the OpenAI Foundation, a nonprofit, controls OpenAI Group PBC, a public benefit corporation that runs the commercial business. Microsoft is a major investor and holds around 27% of OpenAI Group, with the Foundation holding roughly 26%.
Beyond text models, OpenAI's products include image generation, voice and realtime audio, deep research, and Codex for coding tasks, available across ChatGPT and the API.
- Made by
- OpenAI Foundation / OpenAI Group PBC
- Launched
- 2015
- Free plan
- Yes, in ChatGPT. The API has no free plan and is billed per token.
- Available on
- ChatGPT web, desktop and mobile apps, OpenAI API, Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service
Usage and activity
Weekly npm downloads of openai, last 12 months.
Recent releases
OpenAI alternatives
OpenAI compared
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OpenAIvsLangChain
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Questions about OpenAI
What is OpenAI's current model lineup?
As of September 2026 the flagship family is GPT-6, offered in tiers such as Astra, Sol and Luna at different price and speed points, alongside continued access to the earlier GPT-5.6 line on some ChatGPT plans.
How much does ChatGPT Plus cost?
ChatGPT Plus is $20 a month. ChatGPT Pro, with higher usage limits and top-tier model access, is $200 a month.
Is ChatGPT free to use?
Yes, there's a free plan with unlimited text chats on a base model and limited access to uploads, image generation, voice and deep research.
Who controls OpenAI?
The OpenAI Foundation, a nonprofit, controls OpenAI Group PBC, the public benefit corporation that runs the commercial business. Microsoft holds a large minority stake, around 27%.
How is the OpenAI API priced?
Per million tokens, with the rate depending on the model. Batch processing cuts the price roughly in half, and cached input tokens are discounted about 90% from standard rates.
Sources and links
- Pricing, OpenAI API docs
- ChatGPT pricing
- What is ChatGPT Plus?, OpenAI Help Center
- Our structure, OpenAI
- OpenAI, Wikipedia
Work on OpenAI? Claim this listing. Something wrong or out of date? Suggest a correction. Stats come from the public GitHub and npm APIs and update every day.