ChatGPT now affordable | Google docs' new AI feature | WhatsApp may read group chats

The world of Artificial Intelligence has only begun to affect human lives. In times like these, staying up-to-date with the AI world is of utmost importance. Storyboard18 brings you the top AI news of the day.

ChatGPT Go subscription debuts in India as OpenAI’s cheapest plan yet

OpenAI has introduced a new subscription plan, ChatGPT Go, in India. Priced at ₹399 per month, it is the company’s most affordable plan to date and offers significantly higher usage limits compared with the free tier.

The subscription provides ten times more message capacity, ten times more image generations, file upload capabilities, and double the memory available to free users. The launch also coincides with the ability for Indian users to view subscription fees in rupees and make payments directly via UPI.

Nick Turley, Head of ChatGPT, announced the rollout in a post on X, noting that India will be the first market to receive the new plan. OpenAI said it intends to gather feedback from Indian subscribers before expanding ChatGPT Go to other countries.

Pricing across plans Alongside ChatGPT Go, Indian users can now pay for existing subscriptions — ChatGPT Plus and ChatGPT Pro — in local currency. These are priced at ₹1,999 and ₹19,900 per month respectively.

Google docs rolls out Gemini Audio feature to read documents aloud

Google has announced the introduction of a new audio feature in Google Docs, powered by its Gemini artificial intelligence, enabling users to listen to their documents read aloud. The text-to-speech tool, first previewed earlier this year, is now beginning its rollout on the web, aiming to make reading, editing, and reviewing content more interactive and accessible.

The feature can be accessed via the Tools menu, where it appears as an “Audio” option situated between Voice Typing and Gemini. By selecting “Listen to this tab,” users open a pill-shaped audio player displaying the document’s total duration. The floating player can be repositioned anywhere on the screen and offers standard controls including play, pause, and a scrubber to skip sections of text.

WhatsApp AI may be reading your group chats, warns Paytm’s Vijay Shekhar Sharma

WhatsApp has rolled out a series of new features in its latest update, but hidden within them is a change that could allow artificial intelligence tools to scan conversations. The development has sparked concern among users after Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma publicly flagged the update.

Taking to X, Sharma wrote: “IMP: If you are part of a WhatsApp group, from today onwards WhatsApp is allowing AI to read chats. Enable this setting to block it.” He accompanied the post with screenshots illustrating how users can disable the new option and activate Advanced Chat Privacy for additional security. However, WhatsApp spokesperson argued that platform's chats are end-to-end encrypted. "Your personal messages on WhatsApp are always protected by end-to-end encryption so that only you and the people you chat with can read or share them," the spokesperson said. "Meta AI on WhatsApp is completely optional and, if you choose to message or invoke Meta AI in your chats, it can only read what you share with it," the spokesperson added.

'Godfather of AI' says AI may lead to human extinction

Geoffrey Hinton, often described as the “godfather of AI,” has reignited global debate on the future of artificial intelligence with a striking proposal: embedding “maternal instincts” into AI systems to encourage protective and nurturing behaviour towards humans. Speaking at the Ai4 conference in Las Vegas, the British-Canadian computer scientist suggested that this approach could help mitigate the risk of AI turning hostile once it surpasses human intelligence.

Hinton, who was instrumental in developing deep learning technologies and neural networks, has long been vocal about the dangers of unchecked AI development. He has previously estimated there is a 10–20 per cent chance that artificial intelligence could one day cause human extinction. His latest remarks highlight growing unease in the AI research community about whether current safeguards will be sufficient in the long term.

Otter.ai sued for allegedly recording private conversations without consent

AI-powered transcription service Otter.ai is facing a class-action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleging that the company deceptively and surreptitiously recorded private conversations held on platforms such as Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams.

The lawsuit claims that Otter.ai used these recordings—captured without consent—to train its transcription tool, Otter Notebook. It further alleges that the company failed to notify or obtain permission from meeting participants before recording and sharing the conversations with its platform.

As per Otter's privacy policy, it trains its AI using meeting transcripts, but only after users permit it by checking a box that allows Otter and third parties to process private conversations for training and product improvement purposes. However, the lawsuit argues that many users were still misled.