OpenAI trims ChatGPT models

OpenAI removed several named models from the ChatGPT app on February 13, 2026, while leaving those same models available through its application programming interface. (help.openai.com) The retired ChatGPT models include GPT-4o, GPT-4.1, GPT-4.1 mini, OpenAI o4-mini, and GPT-5 Instant and GPT-5 Thinking, according to OpenAI’s help center. OpenAI said conversations and projects tied to those models were moved to GPT-5.3 Instant or GPT-5.4 Thinking and Pro equivalents. (help.openai.com 1) (help.openai.com 2) OpenAI’s current ChatGPT help article says GPT-5.3 is the default model in ChatGPT, and GPT-5.4 mini is available to Free users while paid users get broader access to GPT-5.4 options. The same article says Business, Enterprise, and Edu customers kept GPT-4o inside Custom GPTs until April 3, 2026. (help.openai.com 1) (help.openai.com 2) The change narrows the list of model names ordinary ChatGPT users see, even as OpenAI keeps multiple back-end models running for developers and enterprise customers. OpenAI’s release notes describe ChatGPT as a “single experience” that routes people to newer GPT-5-series options instead of making them choose among older names. (help.openai.com 1) (help.openai.com 2) That split reflects two different products. ChatGPT is OpenAI’s consumer interface with a model picker and workspace features, while the application programming interface is the developer service companies use to call specific models in their own software. (help.openai.com) (platform.openai.com) OpenAI has been tightening that consumer list for weeks. Its model release notes say GPT-5.1 Instant, GPT-5.1 Thinking, and GPT-5.1 Pro were also removed from ChatGPT on March 11, 2026. (help.openai.com) For users, the practical effect is that saved chats still open, but the old model names no longer appear as choices in ChatGPT. For developers, the practical effect is smaller: OpenAI’s help articles repeatedly say application programming interface access “remains unchanged.” (help.openai.com) (help.openai.com) OpenAI has framed the shift as cleanup, not a shutdown. The company kept the older models alive where model-specific access still matters most, then simplified the consumer surface where ChatGPT increasingly behaves like one product instead of a menu of model names. (help.openai.com) (help.openai.com)