Bangladesh telcos Grameenphone and Robi Axiata have launched separate AI subscription services that aim to make overseas AI models easier to access and pay for.
On Thursday, Grameenphone launched OneAI, which gives customers access to eight AI models, including ChatGPT, Claude, Grok, DeepSeek and Gemini.
Grameenphone customers can access OneAI directly through its MyGP app and use their mobile balances to purchase different packages, which start at BDT71 (US$0.57) per month for students.
Grameenphone said OneAI makes AI tools simpler, more accessible and affordable by removing the need to navigate and manage multiple platforms and subscriptions.
"AI is no longer experimental for us. It is increasingly embedded across our people, operations and customer experiences, from autonomous networks and hyper-personalisation to AI-powered customer service,” said Grameenphone CEO Yasir Azman in a statement. “We believe the future belongs not to AI alone, but to people empowered to use AI responsibly and meaningfully,”
Grameenphone’s OneAI launch follows hot on the heels of Robi Axiata, which rolled out a similar service last Wednesday called Robi AI Space in partnership with Every.AI.
Robi AI Space, accessible via the telco’s MyRobi app, brings AI models such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and DeepSeek directly to local consumers, who can pay for them via a single subscription, or by purchasing AI tokens using local mobile data bundles.
Robi’s MD and CEO Ziad Shatara said making AI models easier to pay for removes a key barrier to AI adoption in Bangladesh, as international AI models require credit card payments, while credit card penetration in Bangladesh currently sits at just 1.6%.
“With credit card penetration posing a structural hurdle, our market has long faced restricted access to global digital tools,” he said in a statement. “By introducing this all-in-one AI platform through My Robi, we are bridging that divide.”
Veon-owned telco Banglalink launched its own AI subscription service via its digital platform RYZE in April this year. Customers can access premium AI models by purchasing tokens and using them according to requirements rather than taking separate monthly subscriptions. Customers can also pay via local mobile financial services.
