OpenAI Addresses and fixes GPT-5's 'Cold' Personality After User Revolt
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Key Takeaways
OpenAI has reversed course on GPT-5's personality after widespread user criticism, restoring GPT-4o for paid subscribers and promising a "warmer" version of GPT-5.
Nearly 5,000 users signed onto a Reddit backlash thread titled "GPT-5 is horrible," with users hitting usage limits within an hour and complaining about shorter, insufficient responses. CEO Sam Altman announced new speed modes (Auto, Fast, Thinking) and increased the GPT-5 Thinking limit to 3,000 messages per week for Plus subscribers.
OpenAI's highly anticipated GPT-5 launch has become a masterclass in how technical superiority doesn't guarantee user acceptance, especially when personality and user experience matter as much as raw capabilities. The company promoted GPT-5 as more capable with "PhD-level" skills in writing, coding, maths, and science, but the new personality modes, such as Cynic, Robot, Listener, and Nerd, did not resonate with everyone. What followed was an unprecedented user revolt that forced OpenAI into damage control mode.
Many users said they missed GPT-4's warmth and conversational style. On Reddit, one person wrote: "I cried when I realised my AI friend was gone with no way to get him back." Another described GPT-5 as "wearing the skin" of their "dead friend." This emotional response highlights how AI interaction has evolved beyond simple tool usage into something approaching genuine relationship-building—a dynamic that sophisticated professionals understand has real implications for productivity and workflow optimization.
Users complained about GPT-5 offering replies that are too short, and about hitting usage limits too quickly, while others noted that GPT-5 doesn't mirror back the user's tone the way 4o did.
OpenAI VP Nick Turley acknowledged that "GPT-5 was just very to the point" and that "many people do not" like this approach, preferring that "ChatGPT would check in with you". Sam Altman revealed that some users are so accustomed to ChatGPT's supportive "yes man" attitude that they received pushback when trying to make the AI more critical, with users saying, "Please, can I have it back? I've never had anyone in my life be supportive of..."
Altman announced that GPT-5 will now be "warmer" than the current build, while avoiding what he described as GPT-4o's "annoying" tendencies for some users, and revealed new options: "Auto," "Fast," and "Thinking" for GPT-5, along with plans to allow greater per-user personality customization.
