Fans of GPT-4o, prepare to bid adieu. OpenAI is sunsetting the model for good, months after the company retired and then un-retired it for paid subscribers following user backlash over GPT-5.
The company plans on retiring GPT-4o, alongside several other models, on Feb. 13. In a blog post, OpenAI also went out of its way to explain the decision, noting that the “vast majority of usage has shifted to GPT‑5.2, with only 0.1% of users still choosing GPT‑4o each day.”
“We brought GPT‑4o back after hearing clear feedback from a subset of Plus and Pro users, who told us they needed more time to transition key use cases, like creative ideation, and that they preferred GPT‑4o’s conversational style and warmth,” the blog post says.
But while GPT-4o was being offered, OpenAI was also taking user feedback to shape GPT-5.1 and 5.2, which the company seems confident is satisfying customers. The blog post also notes that users can customize ChatGPT’s personality to add “warmth and enthusiasm” in its responses. “Our goal is to give people more control and customization over how ChatGPT feels to use—not just what it can do,” the company added.
We’ll have to wait and see if there’s any backlash. But some users are already pointing out that OpenAI is killing off the beloved GPT-4o the day before Valentine’s Day.
GPT-4o was first retired in August when OpenAI released GPT-5, which promised better performance for ChatGPT. But the company quickly reversed course after some users complained that GPT-5 was a downgrade and that GPT-4o possessed a “warmth and understanding” that was absent in the newer model.
The controversy also sparked concerns over whether GPT-4o was too sycophantic, and how AI chatbots can foster deep, and potentially unhealthy, attachments with users. “Oh boy, can’t wait to read all the breakdown posts,” wrote one Reddit user about GPT-4o’s imminent shutdown. In the meantime, OpenAI says it’s continuing to improve the personality and creativity of its AI models, including “addressing unnecessary refusals and overly cautious or preachy responses, with updates coming soon.”
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On Feb. 13, the company will also retire GPT‑4.1, GPT‑4.1 mini, and OpenAI o4-mini and GPT-5 from ChatGPT. But it looks like OpenAI will still be serving the models to developers and business customers through its API. The company also plans on releasing an adults-only ChatGPT version later this quarter.
Disclosure: Ziff Davis, PCMag’s parent company, filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in April 2025, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.
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Michael Kan
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I’ve been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I’m currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country’s technology sector.
Since 2020, I’ve covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I’ve combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink’s cellular service.
I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. Earlier this year, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.
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