Paid ChatGPT Users: GPT-4o Back as Default After Outcry – ‘Like Losing a Friend’

CEO Sam Altman announced this change along with numerous others to OpenAI’s proprietary ChatGPT chatbot.

OpenAI has reinstated GPT-4o as a default model option for paid ChatGPT subscribers, reversing a controversial change made during last week’s release of GPT-5. CEO Sam Altman announced the GPT-4o move on Wednesday, along with other updates to the company’s AI chatbot.

When GPT‑5 debuted on Aug. 7, OpenAI made it the default model and removed the model picker from the top left corner of the app and browser versions of ChatGPT, preventing users from manually selecting earlier models. The company said GPT-5 could automatically select the most suitable model for each query under what Altman called “unified intelligence,” making manual selection unnecessary.

However, many paid users — some deeply attached to specific models — expressed frustration over losing GPT-4o, with some likening it to losing a friend. One Reddit user said, “It ...