Part 5/12:
One fundamental issue with ChatGPT’s current model is cost. Google handles over 8.5 billion searches a day at a fraction of a cent per interaction—an economic marvel that funds their entire ecosystem, from self-driving cars to Google Maps. Their in-house hardware, custom chips, and vast infrastructure enable them to operate efficiently at scale.
OpenAI, on the other hand, relies heavily on cloud services and isn’t built for the kind of volume Google offers. Running GPT-level models is expensive; the cost per interaction skyrockets without the economies of scale Google enjoys. This is why OpenAI is losing money on free-tier offerings and is forced to experiment with monetization—introducing ads, paid subscriptions, and app features—much like Facebook or Instagram.