OpenAI faces backlash and expands “thinking” mode access

OpenAI launched GPT-5 with disruptive low pricing but faced user backlash over tone and glitches, prompting fixes, GPT-4o reinstatement, and expanded “thinking” mode access to retain subscribers amid cancellation threats.

OpenAI introduced GPT-5 at just $1.25 per million input tokens and $10 per million output tokens significantly undercutting rivals like Anthropic’s Claude Opus 4.1.

While the pricing aimed to disrupt the AI market, backlash quickly followed as users complained of mechanical tone, errors, and broken model-switching. In response, CEO Sam Altman confirmed GPT-4o would remain available to Plus users and pledged improvements in model-switching, rate limits, and a new “thinking mode.”

Facing subscription cancellations, OpenAI also increased the “thinking” query quota for Plus users from 200 to 3,000 weekly, balancing performance, user trust, and operational costs.

OpenAI