Overview
- OpenAI announced on Thursday that it has stopped new registrations for its top $200-per-month Pro tier after product lead Thibault Sottiaux said the company needed to limit new accounts to protect service quality.
- The pause affects only new Pro sign-ups; existing $200 Pro subscribers and all lower-cost plans and API access remain active and usable.
- OpenAI tied the restriction to intense usage of its new Astra model (reported as GPT-6 Astra), saying those Pro accounts place the most stress on its infrastructure.
- Engineering teams are increasing server capacity but have not provided a firm date to reopen Pro registrations, leaving prospective buyers waiting.
- The move follows OpenAI’s previous temporary freezes after spikes in demand and comes as community posts report billing sync and usage‑limit issues that complicate major model rollouts.