Grab Thailand and OpenAI announced a partnership called “GO Forward with AI” on October 14, 2026, to teach more than 3,000 Thai drivers, riders and merchants to use ChatGPT. It follows a regional Grab-OpenAI deal from the month before to train over 30,000 people across Southeast Asia, inside Grab’s 2026 GrabAcademy program.
The Merchant Module Grab and OpenAI Built
The merchant course, “Grow Your Business with ChatGPT: Attract, Engage & Retain Your Customers,” targets shop owners and restaurant operators on GrabFood and GrabMart. Per Grab’s announcement, it covers using ChatGPT for customer insights, visual branding, social content, and turning reviews into repeat business. Grab’s Country Head, Chantsuda Thananitayaudom, said its existing “GrabMerchant AI Assistant,” live since 2025, is already used by more than 275,000 merchants nationwide.
Free ChatGPT Plus, Only for Those Who Attend
Grab and OpenAI’s offer is specific: drivers, riders and merchants who attend the offline sessions get three months of complimentary ChatGPT Plus. Grab names no enrollment dates, locations or sign-up process yet — only that every module will also ship as bite-sized micro-learning inside the Grab Driver App, so merchants can work through it “at their own pace.” That self-paced version carries no mention of the free Plus access.
What to Check in Your GrabMerchant App Now
- Open GrabMerchant or the Grab Driver app over the next two weeks and watch for the “Grow Your Business with ChatGPT” module as GrabAcademy rolls it out.
- If your shop is invited to an offline session, send someone — the three months of ChatGPT Plus goes to attendees only, not to merchants waiting for the online version.
- Confirm your shop has turned on the existing GrabMerchant AI Assistant before paying for separate analytics — 275,000+ merchants have tried it, but most haven’t.
- Route what ChatGPT drafts for a customer reply into the inbox you already use for LINE, Facebook or Instagram — 1CS’s Unified Inbox keeps it with the rest of the conversation instead of stuck inside Grab’s app.
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Related reading: Grab: 275,000+ Merchants Used Free AI Amid Subsidy Scheme and LINE MAN Wongnai Launches Free AI Assistant for Restaurants.
