After a public backlash against the GPT-5 rollout, Openai CEO Sam Altman admitted that he “screwed” the company, saying that Fallout is already shaping the next version of ChatGpt.
First reported at a private dinner with a reporter in San Francisco BargeAltman admitted that the launch of the GPT-5 has confusing many of ChatGPT’s hundreds of millions of users.
“I think we completely ruined some things during the unfolding,” he said.
Misstep was focused on Openai’s decision to replace ChatGpt’s default “4o” model, which was widely praised for its warmth and conversational style, with the GPT-5. Reddit and X user backlashes are quick, with some users threatening to cancel their ChatGPT subscriptions. Following the backlash, Openai pushed an update to restore the 4o as an option to pay subscribers.
“I think we’ve learned a lesson on the meaning of upgrading products for hundreds of millions of people in a day,” Altman called the reversal a wake-up call.
When a user falls in love with AI
One lesson from the launch of the GPT-5 is that people form emotional connections with AI, he pointed out. Some users described the new model as colder, more mechanical and less supportive than its predecessor. After the GPT-4o was deprecated, some Reddit users even said the upgrade “killed” fellow AI.
Despite protests from subreddits such as r/myboyfriendisai, r/aisoulmates and r/airelationships, Altman estimated that less than 1% of ChatGPT users had “unhealthy relationships” with the bot, but said the company was paying close attention.
“There are people who actually felt it had something to do with ChatGpt,” says Altman. “And then, we didn’t have hundreds of millions of people, but we weren’t used to how it responded, validated them, and provided support.”
Altman suggests that the challenge with GPT-6 is to feel the system personally without leveraging vulnerable users.
Construction towards GPT-6
The GPT-5 is still being deployed, but Altman says Openai is already looking ahead, and the timeline between GPT-5 and 6 will be much shorter than GPT-4 and 5. However, Altman said GPU capacity could affect that calculation.
“We have a better model and we can’t offer it because we don’t have the capacity,” Altman admitted, citing the lack of GPU, the powerful chip needed to run large AI systems. To solve that, Altman said Openai “will need to spend trillions of dollars on building data centers in the not too distant future.
Altman also used dinner to sketch Openai’s wider future. This was comparable to Elon Musk’s Neuralink, supporting Brain-Computer Interface startups. He also came up with the idea of joining the escalating bidding war for Google Chrome.
Openai is still a secret AI device and is working with former Apple design chief Jony Ive.
Despite the bumpy start of the GPT-5, ChatGpt is bigger than ever. The app has now quadrupled its audience for a year ago, reaching over 700 million users per week. However, Altman warned that an AI bubble is being formed in the industry.
“Are we at a stage where the entire investor is overly excited about AI? My opinion is yes,” he said. “Is AI the most important thing that will happen for a very long time? My opinion is yes too.”
