Grab teaches 3,000+ partners ChatGPT; anyone can learn free

More than 3,000 Grab drivers, delivery riders and restaurants in Thailand are about to learn to use ChatGPT for their work and earnings. Can people who do not work with Grab learn the same way?

Grab and OpenAI announced the programme, called GO Forward with AI, on 14 October 2026. People who join the in-person workshops also get three months of ChatGPT Plus, the paid version, at no cost, CNN reported.

They can, because the workshops are built on OpenAI Academy, online courses that anyone with a ChatGPT account can take for free. After reading, you will know what the Thai courses teach, what the free Plus is worth, and how to start learning the same skills today.

Drivers learn to plan shifts, restaurants learn to win customers back

The Thai workshops are split by the kind of work each group does, according to MGR Online and The Reporters.

• Drivers and riders: the course "Grow Your Earnings with AI: Smarter Shifts, Better Service & New Opportunities" covers planning shifts, using translation tools to talk with customers, personal finance and personal branding, and ends with a 30-day plan each person writes.
• Restaurants: the course "Grow Your Business with ChatGPT: Attract, Engage & Retain Your Customers" covers reading customer data, building a brand, planning social media posts and getting regular customers to come back.
• GrabAcademy: Grab's training programme for its partners is adding classes on managing money and investing, affiliate marketing and basic CPR at the same time.

The training goes beyond one question at a time. Participants try ChatGPT Work, OpenAI's tool for longer jobs, such as turning sales figures into a dashboard or building a simple website, according to CNN and OpenAI's announcement.

Participants are also taught to check what ChatGPT produces and to make the decisions themselves. Put simply, the AI helps with the work, but people still make the calls.

Grab's AI assistants already reach hundreds of thousands of Thai partners

The workshops are not the first time Grab has used AI with its partners in Thailand.

Its Driver AI Assistant, a chatbot in the driver app built with OpenAI, has been used by more than 120,000 drivers since it launched in September, and more than 275,000 merchants use its GrabMerchant AI Assistant, Fintech News Singapore reported. Across the region, the driver assistant has reached close to 500,000 drivers, according to OpenAI.

Chantsuda Thananitayaudom, managing director of Grab Thailand, said the courses were designed for Grab drivers and merchants in particular. Kiran Mani, OpenAI's managing director for Asia Pacific and Japan, said access to the technology alone may not be enough and people also need the skills and confidence to use it, The Reporters reported.

The programme began in Singapore on 23 September 2026. A Grab survey there found that half of its drivers and riders already used AI tools, and 87% of those who did not were ready to try.

Thailand is the second country. The goal is 30,000 partners across Southeast Asia within two years, with Indonesia and the Philippines next and Malaysia and Vietnam in 2027, according to OpenAI and Fintech News Singapore. OpenAI will also train GrabAcademy's own trainers so the course can keep running.

Three months of free ChatGPT Plus, worth about 2,097 baht

The offer is for people who attend the in-person workshops.

Workshop participants get three months of ChatGPT Plus free, according to CNN and Fintech News Singapore. ChatGPT's pricing page lists Plus at 699 baht a month in Thailand, so three months are worth about 2,097 baht.

Compared with the free version, Plus adds GPT-6 models that reason more deeply, more messages and file uploads, and more use of deep research and ChatGPT Work.

Neither company has said what happens when the three months end. If you get the free Plus, check before the end date whether it turns into a paid plan, and set a reminder on your phone.

Learn the same skills free, starting with OpenAI Academy

Grab has not yet published how to sign up for the Thai workshops, but it says the lessons will also come to the Grab driver app as short online courses, so drivers and riders should watch the app.

Anyone else can start with OpenAI Academy, which the workshops are based on. Its courses are free to anyone with a ChatGPT account, according to OpenAI's help centre.

1. Go to academy.openai.com and sign in with your ChatGPT account.
2. Select Courses in the sidebar.
3. Pick a course and select Go to course.
4. Select Enroll now if it appears, then open the course.

Start with AI Foundations: about 60 to 75 minutes on asking clearer questions, giving ChatGPT the context it needs and checking its answers. Score 80% or more on the test at the end and you earn a badge. The Academy website is in English, and SV News found no Thai version.

Or try the Thai course topics today in the free ChatGPT app.

• Talking with customers: type what you want to tell a customer in Thai and ask for a short, polite version in English or Chinese to show on your screen.
• Planning work and money: list the hours you can work and your weekly costs, such as fuel and phone, and ask for a simple weekly work plan and budget.
• Reading shop sales: paste last month's sales by dish and day, without customers' names or phone numbers, and ask which dishes sell best on which days and for one promotion idea for a slow day.

Then check every answer, as the workshops teach, because ChatGPT can get numbers and translations wrong.

What to watch next: whether Grab opens places to more Thai partners after the first 3,000, when the online lessons reach the driver app, and what the free Plus turns into after three months.

FAQ

Who can join Grab's ChatGPT workshops in Thailand?

Grab drivers, delivery riders and restaurant merchants. The first round aims to train more than 3,000 people, and Grab has not published how to sign up.

Is the ChatGPT Plus really free?

Workshop participants get three months of ChatGPT Plus at no cost, CNN and Fintech News Singapore reported. Plus is normally 699 baht a month in Thailand, and the companies have not said what happens after the three months.

Can I learn the same skills if I do not work with Grab?

Yes. The workshops are based on OpenAI Academy, whose courses are free at academy.openai.com for anyone with a ChatGPT account. Start with AI Foundations, which takes about 60 to 75 minutes.

Are the OpenAI Academy courses in Thai?

The Academy website is in English, and SV News found no Thai version.

Sources

• OpenAI: Grab and OpenAI bring practical AI skills to Southeast Asia
• OpenAI Help Center: OpenAI Academy courses
• ChatGPT: Plans and pricing
• CNN: Grab announces new Thailand initiative with OpenAI
• Fintech News Singapore: Grab, OpenAI Roll Out ChatGPT Training for Thai Drivers and Merchants
• Fintech News Singapore: Grab, OpenAI Launch Regional AI Skills Programme Starting in Singapore
• MGR Online: แกร็บ - OpenAI ดึง ChatGPT เสริมทักษะร้านค้า-ไรเดอร์กว่า 3,000 คนในไทย
• The Reporters: 'แกร็บ' ผนึก 'OpenAI' อัปสกิลทักษะ AI คนขับและร้านค้า 3 พันราย สร้างโอกาสธุรกิจ