OpenAI Rolls Out GPT-5

Following two years of development and several setbacks, OpenAI is rolling out GPT-5 — its most advanced AI model yet, boasting advanced reasoning and coding capabilities.

Why It Hits: OpenAI may have kicked off the AI revolution with the release of ChatGPT in 2022, but it’s no longer the only game in town. Since then, companies like Google, Microsoft, Anthropic, and others have closed the gap. GPT-5 is OpenAI’s bid to prove it still leads Silicon Valley’s most competitive race.

Behind the Code: So, what can GPT-5, which is now available at no cost, actually do?

• According to CEO Sam Altman, the chatbot can respond to queries “like a Ph.D.-level expert.” We’ll let others be the judge of that.
• It can “vibe code” — create apps with simple English-language prompts.
• Its personality can be altered, with four initial options to start: “Cynic,” “Robot,” “Listener,” and “Nerd.”
• It’s less sycophantic than past versions, with the company stressing that “it spent 5,000 hours testing the technology for biased and harmful behavior,” per The WSJ.

Last Prompt: OpenAI has a lot riding on the success of GPT-5. It already has five million paying business customers, but it wants to multiply that number by wooing them away from other chatbots like Claude and Gemini. Additionally, it’s in talks with Thrive Capital for a secondary stock sale that would value it at $500 billion (two-thirds more than it’s currently valued), making it the most valuable private company in the world.

Prediction: The success of GPT-5 and its ability to make businesses rely solely on ChatGPT could be necessary for the company to keep up with the pace of its own investments.