After people freaked out over GPT-4o’s demise, Sam Altman acknowledges that ’suddenly deprecating old models that users depended on in their workflows was a mistake.‘
Should we be concerned that people have developed a fierce attachment to ChatGPT? Even OpenAI’s CEO isn’t so sure.
In a lengthy Sunday night tweet, Sam Altman wrote that he „can imagine a future where a lot of people really trust ChatGPT’s advice for their most important decisions. Although that could be great, it makes me uneasy.“
ChatGPT is on track to reach 700 million weekly active users, up from 500 million at the end of March and a fourfold increase since last year, Head of ChatGPT Nick Turley tweeted last week. A few days later, OpenAI unleashed GPT-5, which is supposed to offer a major intelligence upgrade. But in a twist, some users revolted, irritated by OpenAI’s decision to retire older models, including the apparently much-beloved GPT-4o.
In response to the backlash, Altman restored GPT-4o for paying ChatGPT subscribers.
In his tweet, he acknowledged „how much of an attachment some people have to specific AI models“, adding, „It feels different and stronger than the kinds of attachment people have had to previous kinds of technology (and so suddenly deprecating old models that users depended on in their workflows was a mistake).
