OpenAI’s unveiling of GPT-4.5 marks a pivotal moment in artificial intelligence, signaling the end of an era for the company’s chatbot technology. While GPT-4.5 may not generate the same level of initial excitement as its predecessor, the upgrade signifies a fundamental shift in how OpenAI approaches AI development.
Two years prior, even seasoned AI researchers were taken aback when OpenAI began privately demonstrating its GPT-4 technology. The system’s capacity to answer questions, write verse, and even generate computer code far surpassed expectations for the time.
OpenAI has announced that GPT-4.5 will be the last version of its chatbot system without incorporating “chain-of-thought reasoning.” This addition suggests that the AI will start to mimic human thought processes, taking time to consider a question before providing a response, as opposed to immediately answering. This capability to ponder before responding represents a major step toward more sophisticated AI.
Mia Glaese, OpenAI’s vice president of research, noted that the system offers a more natural conversational experience. “What sets the model apart is its ability to engage in warm, intuitive, naturally flowing conversations, and we think it has a stronger understanding of what users mean when they ask for something,”
This release also reflects movement in AI research toward systems that can work through complex tasks. OpenAI’s o1 technology, introduced last fall, is designed to tackle math, coding, and science problems. Other companies, like Google, Meta, and the start-up DeepSeek, are exploring similar technologies.
