With freebies, OpenAI, Google vie for Indian users and training data

OpenAI's efforts to offer free services in India, along with Google, marks a strategic move to capture the vast and data-hungry Indian market, with 730 million smartphone devices and extremely low mobile data rates. This development is particularly noteworthy as India is the second-biggest smartphone market, presenting a significant opportunity for AI companies to collect valuable training data. For website owners, this means that they can expect a surge in AI bot traffic from Indian users, potentially leading to increased engagement and data generation on their platforms. As OpenAI and Google vie for market share, website owners may see more Indian users interacting with their content, which could impact their analytics and content strategies. Moreover, with the influx of new users, website owners may need to reassess their content policies and moderation strategies to accommodate the diverse and growing user base. To navigate this shift, website owners can take several actionable steps: firstly, review and update their llms.txt files to ensure they are prepared for the potential increase in AI bot traffic; secondly, consider implementing region-specific content moderation policies to cater to the unique needs and preferences of Indian users; and thirdly, monitor their website analytics closely to understand the impact of the growing Indian user base on their overall traffic and engagement metrics.