OpenAI has stopped selling the $200 tier of ChatGPT Pro, saying demand for its Astra model is straining its systems. European organisations face a second constraint the pause does not touch, because Astra still has no EU data zone deployment and no paid option keeps processing inside the EU data boundary.
OpenAI has paused new sign-ups to the $200 tier of ChatGPT Pro, TechCrunch reported, citing the load its newest model is putting on its systems. Astra launched on 3 September. Existing subscribers keep their plans.
The company’s help pages name the paused tier as Pro 20X. The $100 Pro plan remains on sale, along with Plus, Go, the API and enterprise accounts.
For European buyers the harder problem sits elsewhere. Astra reached Microsoft Foundry with no European data zone, and that has not changed.
Foundry lists the model across 26 regions. All six of its data zone deployments are American.
