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In focus
- Why GPT-5’s price cut matters more than its IQ in Southeast Asia
- Design rivals Figma and Motiff end legal tussle
- Monee emerges as Sea Group’s rising star in latest earnings
Hello reader,
A friend once told me that AI model launches would eventually resemble new phone releases. You watch the keynote, skim the specs, and wonder if this year’s upgrade is worth the switch – or if last year’s version still does the job just fine.
That thought came back to me this week after talking to several founders about OpenAI’s recently launched GPT-5. None were outright disappointed, but nobody called it a giant leap either.
The changes feel more like a polish than a breakthrough, and it’s hard not to wonder if the recent exodus of top talent from OpenAI to places like Meta had something to do with that. I’d wager it does.
Still, who can afford to ignore GPT-5?. In today’s Big Story, I look at why GPT-5’s most interesting impact on Southeast Asia’s AI startup ecosystem may come from its improved economics, not its supposedly sharper IQ.
In other words, the appeal lies less in what GPT-5 can do and more in how OpenAI is pricing it. Three different variants – all aggressively priced – could give startups more room to experiment without torching their margins.
That should open the door to ideas that were too expensive to try before – but only if they know how to manage their token spend. In this game, cost discipline will matter more than chasing the shiniest model.
Elsewhere, our senior editor Melissa Goh has the latest on the legal fight between design software giant Figma and rival Motiff, including fresh details on the settlement terms.
Glenn Kaonang, journalist
Top Stories
1️⃣ Price beats intelligence for OpenAI’s newest model
Image credit: Timmy Loen
GPT-5 feels less like a big brain upgrade and more like a pricing shake-up, with three budget-friendly variants giving businesses more control over costs.
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