Vitaly Nagay

The Real Costs of Using Claude and GPT for Russian Businesses Exposed

Accessing generative AI models like Claude and GPT has become straightforward for Russian companies, yet calculating their true expenses remains complex. Hidden factors such as intermediary commissions, currency conversion rates, taxes, and the often-overlooked costs of model reasoning tokens can double or triple initial estimates. Founder Vitaly Nagay of the Heli service analyzed these financial and organizational risks for Russian firms relying on foreign AI providers. In one example, a support department processing 20,000 monthly queries sees costs rise from $240 to $480 when reasoning tokens are included. Nagay recommends evaluating providers by dividing actual ruble charges by the model's official dollar pricing to reveal hidden markups. Additional concerns involve data control, document compliance, and access history when employees use personal subscriptions. Companies are advised to verify billing details, data storage policies, and issue dedicated API keys with spending limits before procurement.