More than 1.36 million Thais register for the TH-AI Passport while 101,764 flood in within hours. Anutin guarantees the ฿1.621 billion platform, but a five-hour global ChatGPT outage that night highlights the risks of dependence on foreign providers.
Thailand’s ฿1.621 billion TH-AI Passport roared into operation on Monday, attracting 101,764 users within four-and-a-half hours. Registrations hit 1.36 million as Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul guaranteed the controversial national platform was “a good project.” AiPASS now offers more than 30 international artificial intelligence models through one state-backed portal. However, fierce questions remain over procurement, technical limits, overseas data processing and taxpayer value. Then, hours after the successful launch, ChatGPT suffered a five-hour global outage affecting Thailand. The incidents were not connected, yet the disruption exposed the programme’s reliance on powerful overseas systems beyond Bangkok’s control.
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul guaranteed that Thailand’s TH-AI Passport was a good project after its successful first day. The ฿1.621 billion programme opened nationwide at 9 am on Monday. Within four-and-a-half hours, 101,764 people had entered the platform. Meanwhile, registrations reached 1,366,217 by 12.30 pm.
The strong opening gave ministers immediate evidence of public demand. Later that night, however, ChatGPT suffered disruption across Thailand and worldwide. The problems began at approximately 10.04 pm in Thailand. Consequently, the successful launch ended with fresh questions about international platform reliability.
There was no evidence connecting Thailand’s rollout with the global ChatGPT outage. The two developments involved separate platforms and technical systems. Nevertheless, both occurred during TH-AI Passport’s first official day. Together, they demonstrated the opportunities and operational limits surrounding international artificial intelligence services.
Anutin guarantees TH-AI Passport after more than 100,000 people used the platform on opening day
Mr Anutin endorsed the programme during an inspection in Songkhla province. At 11.30 am, he visited the Na Khuan floodgate in Hat Yai district. His visit focused on local preparations for possible flooding. During the event, he also addressed the nationwide artificial intelligence launch.
Speaking to the welcoming crowd, Mr Anutin credited Digital Economy and Society Minister Chaiyanok Chidchob with preparing the project. He said Mr Chaiyanok had laid the necessary infrastructure. The Prime Minister acknowledged that many older Thais might not understand the technology. Even so, younger generations would learn how to benefit.
“They may not know how to use it,” Mr Anutin said. “But their children and grandchildren will know how to benefit.” He then delivered his firm verdict on the national programme. “This is a good project,” the Prime Minister said.
His intervention followed months of political, financial and technical scrutiny. Questions have focused on procurement, capability, data protection and value. Against that background, Monday’s opening figures gave ministers a powerful start. More than 100,000 people used AiPASS before the afternoon was well underway.
More than 1.36 million Thais register as AiPASS opens access to over 30 artificial intelligence models
The Digital Economy and Society Ministry formally opened the service at 9 am. By 12.30 pm, registrations had reached 1,366,217. One hour later, 101,764 registered participants had entered the platform. Therefore, about 7.4% of registrants became active users during the opening period.
In parallel, registrations continued rising following the launch. The government has capped participation at five million people. Accordingly, more than 3.6 million places remained available after Monday morning. Still, the initial response demonstrated substantial interest before the wider rollout developed.
TH-AI Passport is available to Thai citizens aged 15 and older. It operates through the AiPASS platform at aipass.go.th. The system combines more than 30 artificial intelligence models from over 14 developers. Users can access them through one government-backed portal.
As a result, participants do not require separate subscriptions with numerous providers. They can select individual models according to each assignment. The services cover conversations, computer programming and detailed research. In addition, they support documents, workflow development and creative production.
Top global models give Thai users one portal for research, documents, workflows and creatives
Notably, the platform includes several prominent international artificial intelligence systems. These include GPT-5.6 Sol, o3 Deep Research, Claude Opus 5 and Gemini Pro. Other available systems include Nano Banana Pro, Lyria 3 Pro and Sonar Reasoning Pro. Seedream 4.0 and Seedance 2.0 are also offered.
Under this structure, users can move between systems without buying several commercial subscriptions. Each model offers tools designed for particular work. One service may handle research, while another produces illustrations or video. Thus, AiPASS provides several capabilities through a single access point.
People without artificial intelligence experience can begin with familiar assignments. For example, users can research information, summarise documents or prepare written drafts. They can also create illustrations and develop workflows. Afterwards, participants can test specialised models and more advanced applications.
The programme targets students, government personnel, entrepreneurs and the general public. Specifically, it seeks to expand digital and artificial intelligence skills nationwide. Ministers also want those abilities aligned with changing labour-market requirements. Beyond that, the project aims to increase productivity and support Thailand’s digital economy.
International partners support AiPASS training as political scrutiny follows its successful opening
AiPASS links access to artificial intelligence tools with organised training. Its Learn, Earn and Plern concept connects education with practical applications. Users can complete individual courses before applying those skills through the platform. In this way, the scheme combines structured learning with direct technological access.
Global technology companies contributed knowledge and curriculum material. Partners include Google for Education, Microsoft Elevate, OpenAI and Nvidia Deep Learning Institute. Through these partnerships, users receive access to international training resources. At the same time, AiPASS provides models for applying that knowledge.
Mr Chaiyanok presented the heavy registration response as evidence of national readiness. Mr Anutin has now reinforced that argument with his personal guarantee. Earlier, he said artificial intelligence would transform education, employment and business. On that basis, he believes Thai workers must prepare for rapid technological change.
Yet the successful opening did not end the fierce dispute surrounding the programme. Democrat Party deputy leader Karndee Leowpairoj previously demanded its cancellation. She also called for a complete review of the ฿1.621 billion expenditure. Her objections covered procurement, specifications and taxpayer value.
Critics target project costs, procurement and technical limits despite powerful registration figures
Ms Karndee challenged several individual spending items within the project. Among them were registration costs and money allocated for satisfaction surveys. She argued that some figures appeared unusually high. Moreover, she questioned whether AiPASS exceeded services already available without charge.
On another front, Ms Karndee raised concerns about possible procurement irregularities and rigged specifications. She urged ministers to stop the project before further money was spent. In response, the government proceeded with Monday’s national launch. Strong registrations then challenged claims that public interest would remain limited.
Separately, independent technology specialists have questioned the platform’s practical capabilities. IMC Institute director Thanachart Numnon said free artificial intelligence services might offer better value. His assessment focused on functions needed for serious professional work. Earlier testing found that AiPASS struggled with large file uploads.
By comparison, free versions of ChatGPT could process larger documents. AiPASS also accepted fewer files for some presentation assignments. Free ChatGPT services accepted more than ten, while AiPASS accepted only three. Consequently, those restrictions could affect students, companies and professional users.
Overseas processing and reliance on foreign models deepen scrutiny over data protection and investment
Mr Thanachart said modern artificial intelligence extends far beyond basic conversations. Current systems can summarise large documents, prepare presentations and generate videos. Furthermore, they can automate increasingly complicated workplace processes. Hence, file capacity and output options directly influence practical usefulness.
Critics also questioned the programme’s broader investment strategy. They asked why public money was financing access to overseas models. Instead, they wanted greater investment in Thai technology, specialists and startup companies. Despite those objections, ministers continued with the five-million-user rollout.
Data handling produced another source of scrutiny before Monday’s opening. Information entered through AiPASS may be processed outside Thailand. This occurs when people select models operated by international companies. Nonetheless, the ministry insists that users’ personal information remains protected.
The Digital Economy and Society Ministry says providers cannot retain personal details. Equally, companies cannot use that information to train their models. Officials describe those protections as stronger than ordinary consumer subscriptions. Even with those safeguards, overseas processing remains embedded within the service.
Thailand does not host every artificial intelligence model available through AiPASS. Instead, the portal connects users with systems developed and operated abroad. That arrangement greatly expands the range of available tools. Conversely, it leaves individual services dependent on their providers’ infrastructure.
Pay-per-use funding faces its first test as global ChatGPT disruption strikes late on Monday night
The programme also uses a pay-per-active-user arrangement. Under the model, government payments are tied to accounts which actually use AiPASS. The structure seeks to prevent full payments for dormant registrations. For that reason, active-user figures carry financial and political importance.
Registration alone does not produce the same cost as continuing use. Rather, state payments depend on actual participation through the platform. Monday’s 101,764 active users therefore provided an important opening measurement. Crucially, the figure went beyond the larger total of advance registrations.
Against this successful start, Monday night brought a separate international disruption. ChatGPT users in Thailand and other countries began reporting serious problems. Complaints included network errors, delayed answers and interrupted tasks. Some users could not begin work, while others could not continue existing assignments.
The outage began at approximately 11.04 am Eastern Time in the United States. That corresponded with approximately 10.04 pm in Thailand. Soon afterwards, reports increased sharply across several countries. Downdetector recorded approximately 1,405 complaints near 12.15 pm Eastern Time.
In Thailand, that reporting point corresponded with approximately 11.15 pm. Importantly, Downdetector’s figure represented individual complaints, not every affected user. OpenAI then confirmed elevated errors and latency affecting ChatGPT Work. Users across several subscription plans struggled to begin or continue tasks.
OpenAI outage continues into Tuesday, but no failure is reported involving Thailand’s AiPASS
The main incident lasted more than five hours. As a consequence, the disruption continued into Tuesday morning in Thailand. Further problems then affected ChatGPT conversations using the Free and Go plans. Meanwhile, OpenAI’s Responses API suffered elevated latency.
The disruption affected one of the leading artificial intelligence companies connected with Thailand’s programme. OpenAI also contributed knowledge and training resources to the AiPASS curriculum. There was, however, no indication that the Thai portal itself failed. Nor was there evidence connecting Thai demand with OpenAI’s global problems.
By then, Thailand’s platform had already completed a successful first day. More than 100,000 people had entered AiPASS during the opening hours. Even so, the outage remained relevant to the national initiative. AiPASS gathers numerous international services behind one Thai portal.
That structure provides convenience, choice and access to powerful systems. Yet individual models remain dependent upon infrastructure controlled by their developers. Thailand can operate the portal, fund access and provide training. It cannot, however, repair failures inside an overseas company’s network.
Thailand cannot control overseas systems. AiPASS offers alternatives with more than 30 models
Similarly, Bangkok cannot guarantee uninterrupted performance from every international model. Technical control remains with the companies developing and operating those systems. Monday night showed that even leading providers can suffer prolonged interruptions. As such, reliability joined the continuing debate over cost, capability and privacy.
The presence of more than 30 models potentially gives AiPASS users alternatives. Other systems may remain available when one provider experiences problems. Officials did not report how AiPASS handled Monday night’s ChatGPT disruption. Significantly, no failure involving the Thai portal was announced.
The outage therefore did not erase the launch’s strong results. Likewise, the opening figures did not remove concerns about dependence on foreign systems. Instead, Monday produced two important developments within several hours. Each carried different consequences for the government and its users.
First, Thailand successfully opened a national platform offering advanced artificial intelligence access to ordinary citizens. More than 1.36 million people had registered by Monday afternoon. Additionally, 101,764 participants entered the system during its opening four-and-a-half hours. The figures delivered the heavy public response ministers had predicted.
Successful AiPASS opening and global ChatGPT outage produce two contrasting results within hours
Second, ChatGPT encountered a prolonged global outage later that night. Thai users experienced the same disruption as customers elsewhere. In effect, the day showed strong public demand alongside the importance of international service reliability. It placed that issue before ministers on the opening night.
Mr Anutin’s endorsement put his authority firmly behind TH-AI Passport. He credited Mr Chaiyanok with developing the infrastructure and preparing the launch. More broadly, the Prime Minister placed younger Thais at the centre of his argument. Their ability to use the technology formed the core of his guarantee.
The government must now convert registration figures into sustained use. The project targets schools, workplaces, businesses and government offices. As part of this, its payment structure makes continued participation particularly important. Dormant accounts will not deliver the same financial or practical results.
Officials must also answer existing questions about procurement, technical performance and data handling. Those disputes survived Monday’s successful launch. In particular, heavy registrations do not resolve concerns about file and presentation restrictions. The programme’s capabilities must now be tested through daily use.
Even so, the first-day figures provided a clear measure of public interest. More than 100,000 users tested the platform within hours. Simultaneously, 1.36 million registrations created a substantial base for further growth. The government still has places for more than 3.6 million additional participants.
Strong demand backs the launch, but ChatGPT outage puts international service reliability in focus
The ChatGPT outage then provided a separate international test. It showed that leading artificial intelligence systems can suffer substantial interruptions. At no point did it demonstrate a failure within Thailand’s launch. No evidence connected the national rollout with OpenAI’s problems.
Monday therefore ended with a balanced but striking result. TH-AI Passport opened successfully, attracted heavy demand and secured Mr Anutin’s firm guarantee. Later, ChatGPT suffered hours of disruption across Thailand and the world. The outage exposed an external risk surrounding international artificial intelligence services.
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For the government, the opening numbers represented an immediate success. For users, the nighttime disruption showed the importance of reliable access. Mr Anutin has declared the programme sound after its first official day. Now, more than 1.36 million registered Thais can test that judgement themselves.
The rollout will move beyond launch-day figures. Ultimately, usage, technical performance, spending and data protection will determine its record. For now, the government secured the successful opening it wanted. However, the global outage put reliability into the debate before midnight.
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