Short-Lived ChatGPT Go Deal Shakes Up Portugal’s AI Costs

Nothing spreads faster through Portugal’s tech community than word of a cheaper tool that might lighten next month’s bank statement. In little more than a weekend, OpenAI’s new “Go” tier did exactly that—promising most of the ChatGPT experience for one-third of the usual price—before vanishing almost as quickly as it appeared. The dizzying debut has reopened an old debate: what does an affordable generative AI plan really buy, and how safe is it to use?

A Swift Entrance, an Even Swifter Exit

For four intense days at the start of November 2025, ChatGPT Go sat on Portuguese sign-up pages offering a €7.99 subscription. It was marketed as a budget gateway to OpenAI’s flagship chatbot, and early adopters jumped at the chance. Yet by 4 November the company announced an abrupt withdrawal, citing internal “product realignment.” The sudden reversal turned the plan into a collector’s item and left a lingering market surprise that still dominates local Telegram groups.

What You Actually Get for €7.99

During its brief Portuguese outing, the Go tier unlocked GPT-5 for everyday conversations together with larger message limits and snappier image generation than the free version. Users gained extended memory so the bot could recall context over longer chats, plus simplified project tools that sit under the new “My Work” tab. A fully-featured voice mode arrived too, and data scientists were pleased to see inline Python analysis slots. The offer felt unmistakably multimodal, storing files in short-term cloud storage to keep everyday workflow smooth.

Missing Ingredients and the Cost of Convenience

The discount inevitably came with trade-offs. Gone was Sora video creation, an eye-catching feature in ChatGPT Plus. The stripped package also lacked Agent mode, so there was no autonomous browser that writes reports while you sip espresso. Equally absent were advanced reasoning upgrades, historic GPT-4o toggles, and the direct API access favored by developers. For creative professionals chasing studio-grade images or teams depending on code automation, the heavy users soon noticed the widening value gap between Go and its €23 sibling.

Competitors Feel the Heat

Even in its short life, the entry-level plan squeezed rivals. Google Gemini Advanced still costs roughly triple, while Microsoft Copilot Pro and Claude Pro ask €20 monthly. Analysts talked of mounting price pressure as consumers examined a new feature matrix: if you prioritise workspace integration Gemini wins, if you care about bulk document analysis Claude might edge ahead, but nobody could ignore Go’s undercutting. Executives in Dublin and Madrid spoke privately of “European expansion alarms” and growing subscription fatigue as the shake-up signalled a broader competitive shake-up.

Data Protection on the Iberian Radar

Lower price or not, privacy never discounts itself. Lawyers remind users that both Plus and Go fall under the same GDPR obligations: an opt-out setting is available, yet many overlook it. All conversational logs may feed model training unless disabled. Cyber-security experts warn of heightened phishing risk and the platform’s potential to seed fake news. Rumours that Portuguese regulators are drafting fresh guidance highlight a rising cyber-security anxiety among firms struggling to balance AI ambitions with enterprise compliance. The net result is a perceptible trust deficit every new plan must overcome.

Where Does This Leave Portuguese Users?

For now, would-be Go subscribers drift back to the free tier or swallow the cost of Plus. Early adopters—often students and small businesses—lament the missed bargain but also acknowledge Portugal’s modest digital skills index, where price sensitivity is high and cloud budgets tight. Economists argue that strong economic context makes tiered pricing essential for wider AI literacy, yet they caution that any long-term roadmap must stabilise. Until OpenAI reveals its next steps, consumer choice hangs in limbo, a reminder that AI literacy and future pricing will evolve in tandem with an ever-tightening regulatory watch.