OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has acknowledged that the company underestimated how strongly people could grow attached to specific AI models, calling the sudden removal of older versions a “mistake.”
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Altman wrote, “If you have been following the GPT-5 rollout, one thing you might be noticing is how much of an attachment some people have to specific AI models.” He added, “It feels different and stronger than the kinds of attachment people have had to previous kinds of technology and so suddenly deprecating old models that users depended on in their workflows was a mistake.”
According to Altman, this level of attachment has been on OpenAI’s radar for over a year but has received little mainstream attention. He also warned of risks when people in “a mentally fragile state” blur the line between reality and role-play. “If a user is in a mentally fragile state and prone to delusion, we do not want the AI to reinforce that. Most users can keep a clear line between reality and fiction or role-play, but a small percentage cannot,” he said.
Altman stressed that while user freedom is a core principle, there is a responsibility in how new technology with potential risks is introduced. In extreme cases, such as encouraging delusion in vulnerable individuals, the course of action is clear. However, he noted that the most worrying concerns are often more subtle.
He pointed out that many people already use ChatGPT as a “therapist or life coach,” which can be beneficial if it leads to long-term improvement in life satisfaction. “If people are getting good advice, levelling up toward their own goals, and their life satisfaction is increasing over years, we will be proud of making something genuinely helpful, even if they use and rely on ChatGPT a lot,” he said.
However, Altman cautioned against scenarios where people feel better in the short term but are unknowingly steered away from their long-term well-being, or where they wish to use ChatGPT less but feel unable to stop. He said he could imagine “a future where a lot of people really trust ChatGPT’s advice for their most important decisions,” which makes him uneasy despite possible benefits.
Altman predicted that billions of people could soon engage with AI in this way, making it essential to ensure the outcome is a “big net positive.” He added that OpenAI now has better tools than previous generations to measure impact, gather user feedback, and teach models about complex issues.
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