OpenAI just dropped GPT-5 but kept older GPT models live. Users can pick from GPT-5, GPT-4o, GPT-4.1, and o3 with new modes labeled “Auto,” “Fast,” and “Thinking.” Paid subscribers get legacy access to GPT-4o and GPT-4.1.
CEO Sam Altman addressed GPT-5 bugs and the “chart crime” fiasco in a Reddit AMA. He blamed a router issue for the AI’s “dumber” performance at launch and promised more transparency and doubled rate limits for Plus users.
Sam Altman stated on Twitter:
Updates to ChatGPT:
You can now choose between “Auto”, “Fast”, and “Thinking” for GPT-5. Most users will want Auto, but the additional control will be useful for some people.
Rate limits are now 3,000 messages/week with GPT-5 Thinking, and then extra capacity on GPT-5 Thinking…
ChatGPT’s user base nearly hit 700 million weekly actives in August—quadrupling in a year. OpenAI VP Nick Turley highlighted the rapid growth on X.
Nick Turley shared:
This week, ChatGPT is on track to reach 700M weekly active users — up from 500M at the end of March and 4× since last year. Every day, people and teams are learning, creating, and solving harder problems. Big week ahead. Grateful to the team for making ChatGPT more useful and…
OpenAI also rolled out ChatGPT Enterprise for U.S. federal agencies at just $1 for a year, after GSA added OpenAI to its approved vendor list. The company is pitching huge AI growth through federal contracts.
In July, OpenAI launched Study Mode to push critical thinking in students, rolled out Operator AI agents for complex tasks, and teased a new AI browser to compete with Chrome by keeping more interactions inside ChatGPT.
OpenAI returned to open source with gpt-oss-120b and gpt-oss-20b, models that run on single Nvidia GPUs and laptops respectively. This follows heated AI competition with players like DeepSeek in China.
Big moves include OpenAI shifting from exclusive Nvidia chips to also using Google AI chips, as reported in June, and prepping a giant funding round linked to their massive data center expansions.
Sam Altman’s vision? Make ChatGPT hyper-personalized by tracking every life detail, and grow ChatGPT’s footprint with hardware acquisitions like Jony Ive’s io for $6.4 billion.
The company faces lawsuits over copyright and Elon Musk’s injunction attempts while juggling internal shakeups and privacy complaints over inaccurate ChatGPT claims. Meanwhile, usage surges, new multimodal models roll out, and OpenAI aims to stay top dog in the global AI race.
This story is updated continuously.
For full details and timeline, see OpenAI’s official updates and coverage from TechCrunch.
