OpenAI narrows ChatGPT models

OpenAI has stripped older models out of ChatGPT’s picker and pushed users onto newer GPT-5.3 and GPT-5.4 options. (help.openai.com) OpenAI’s help center says GPT-4o, GPT-4.1, GPT-4.1 mini, OpenAI o4-mini, and GPT-5 Instant and Thinking were retired from ChatGPT on February 13, 2026. GPT-5.1 Instant, Thinking, and Pro followed on March 11, 2026. (help.openai.com; help.openai.com) The replacement inside ChatGPT is a narrower lineup: OpenAI says GPT-5.3 is now the default for logged-in users, while GPT-5.3 Instant and GPT-5.4 Thinking sit behind the model picker. On April 9, 2026, OpenAI also added GPT-5.3 Instant Mini as the fallback after users hit GPT-5.3 Instant limits. (help.openai.com; help.openai.com) A “model” is the version of the system that writes the answer, and the picker is the menu that lets users choose among them. OpenAI’s change means fewer visible choices in the consumer app, even as the company keeps multiple versions running behind the scenes. (help.openai.com; help.openai.com) OpenAI also carved out a temporary exception for workplace customers. Its documentation said ChatGPT Business, Enterprise, and Education users could still use GPT-4o inside custom GPTs until April 3, 2026, even after it disappeared from regular chats. (help.openai.com; help.openai.com) That window has now closed. OpenAI’s current help articles say GPT-4o is “fully retired across all plans” after April 3, 2026, while adding that application programming interface access remains unchanged. (help.openai.com; help.openai.com) The shift leaves ChatGPT and the OpenAI application programming interface on different tracks. OpenAI’s retirement notices say the removals apply to ChatGPT, not the application programming interface, and promise advance notice before any future application programming interface retirements. (help.openai.com) A separate report has fueled talk about what comes next. A blog post published April 11 said a model nicknamed “Spud,” described there as GPT-5.5, finished pretraining on March 24 and could ship by April 30, citing unnamed sources and a Polymarket betting market. (abhs.in; polymarket.com) OpenAI has not announced a product called GPT-5.5 or “Spud” in its help center or model release notes. The company’s published documentation, updated through April 9, 2026, names GPT-5.3 and GPT-5.4 as the current ChatGPT lineup. (help.openai.com; help.openai.com; help.openai.com) For ChatGPT users, the practical change is already here: fewer legacy options, more automatic routing, and a cleaner menu built around the newest GPT-5 variants. For anyone waiting on “Spud,” the public record still runs through OpenAI’s own documentation, not the rumor mill. (help.openai.com; help.openai.com; abhs.in)