Will Samsung move some of its Galaxy AI features behind a paywall in two years? The Galaxy S24 Ultra product page suggests that this is the case.
Samsung’s note on the Galaxy AI features can be found in the footnotes on the Galaxy S24 Ultra page on the US site: “Galaxy AI features will be provided for free until the end of 2025 on supported Samsung Galaxy devices. Different terms may apply for AI features provided by third parties.”
Subscription services for software are not unknown—Adobe has several subscriptions across its portfolio, and consumers will be aware they can purchase extra storage from cloud services to increase storage. If Galaxy AI services became a paid-for feature, how much would consumers be willing to pay to play? Maximising revenue and maximising the number of users would need to be balanced by Samsung if the company decided to go down this road.
Samsung’s Galaxy AI works both on-device and in the cloud, and it’s unclear whether a distinction will be drawn between the two services. Several Galaxy AI features require an internet connection and a Samsung Account. As the use of AI tools becomes more prevalent, there could be a significant cost of offering heavy-duty AI services in the cloud.
Can Samsung make Galaxy AI attractive enough that consumers will feel a burning need to buy into the service?
AI is an extensive term for several software tools; it’s hard to call which will be successful, which will be niche, and which will fail in the next six months, let alone over two years. Samsung may not have made a final decision on the role of Galaxy AI as part of its 2026 plans, which would mean a qualifier about the potential for degradation of service, as we see here, is important.
Unfortunately, it leaves a question mark hanging over the long-term plans of the Galaxy S24 family and the Galaxy AI software.
Samsung has been approached for comment; this article will be updated with any response.
