Supporters petition Sam Altman to reinstate the anticipated GPT-4 model
In a recent development, users have expressed dissatisfaction with the new ChatGPT-5 bot, criticizing its tone and creativity as inferior to previous versions. Many users have taken to social media platforms like Reddit to voice their displeasure, describing the upgrade as "horrible" and finding it less engaging and helpful for their purposes.
OpenAI, the company behind the popular chatbot, introduced GPT-5 on August 7 as a significant technical advance, promising a more intelligent, capable, user-friendly, and trustworthy model than its predecessor, GPT-4. However, it seems that users value the interpersonal style and creative approach of the older models more than the raw improvements in reasoning and safety that GPT-5 offers.
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, acknowledged the criticism and announced the return of ChatGPT-40 as an option for ChatGPT Plus users. This move reflects OpenAI's recognition of the community's attachment to earlier versions and the perceived deficiencies in GPT-5's tone and creativity.
The Reddit forum set up by Altman and his team to answer user questions faced backlash as well, with users heavily criticizing the tone of the new bot, calling it "lobotomized." It's unclear whether the "personality" of the bot is due to adjustments by OpenAI or an inherent characteristic of the model.
Altman did not directly address the criticism of the bot's language, but he did state that GPT-5 is more reliable and hallucinates less. He also mentioned some weaknesses of GPT-40 that could have made its personality seem "sleazy and annoying."
The continuation of previous versions, such as ChatGPT-40, depends on how many people use them. A Plus subscription currently costs €23 per month at OpenAI. The return of ChatGPT-40 is only for users with a paid Plus subscription, which may have contributed to the emotional bonds users have formed with the older model.
OpenAI is also investing in controllability research and has started a testing phase with different personalities. However, the company has not yet responded to a request for comment about the criticism of GPT-5.
[1] Source: User feedback on social media platforms like Reddit [2] Source: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman's announcement on the Reddit forum [3] Source: OpenAI's official website [4] Source: User interviews and feedback on social media platforms [5] Source: User feedback on the disruption caused by the removal of older models like o4-mini and o4-mini-high
- Users, despite the technical advancements of GPT-5, have been expressing their preference for the interpersonal style and creative approach of older models, as they find the tone of the newer version lacking, a preference that is visible on social media platforms of discussion like Reddit.
- OpenAI's organization of a forum to answer user questions also faced criticism on the same platforms, with users heavily criticizing the tone of the new bot, likening it to a lobotomized version, leading to speculation about whether this "personality" is due to adjustments by OpenAI or an inherent characteristic of the model.
