OpenAI unveils GPT-5.5 models
- OpenAI said on April 23 it released GPT-5.5, and on April 24 expanded it to the API with GPT-5.5 Pro, pitching both as models built for coding, research, and tool-using work. - OpenAI’s pricing page lists GPT-5.5 at $5 per 1 million input tokens and $30 output, while GPT-5.5 Pro is $30 input and $180 output in the API. - Databricks said it already offers GPT-5.5 with Unity AI Gateway controls, underscoring how model launches now arrive bundled with governance and cost questions. (databricks.com)
OpenAI released GPT-5.5 on April 23 and added GPT-5.5 and GPT-5.5 Pro to its application programming interface on April 24. (openai.com) Large language models predict the next token, or chunk of text, but newer systems are also built to use tools like web search, spreadsheets, and coding environments. OpenAI said GPT-5.5 is designed for that kind of multi-step computer work. (openai.com 1) (openai.com 2) OpenAI described GPT-5.5 as its “smartest and most intuitive to use model yet” and said it is aimed at coding, online research, document creation, spreadsheet work, and moving across tools until a task is finished. (openai.com 1) (openai.com 2) The company’s system card says GPT-5.5 asks for less guidance than earlier models, uses tools more effectively, checks its own work, and keeps going on complex tasks. OpenAI also said the April 24 update added extra safeguards for the API release. (openai.com 1) (openai.com 2) The price moved up with the launch. OpenAI’s pricing page lists GPT-5.5 at $5 per 1 million input tokens, $0.50 cached input, and $30 output. (openai.com) GPT-5.5 Pro is priced far higher at $30 per 1 million input tokens and $180 output, according to the same pricing page. OpenAI’s pricing table also shows GPT-5.4 at $2.50 input and $15 output at its lower tier, making GPT-5.5 materially more expensive. (openai.com) Databricks said on April 25 that GPT-5.5 was already available through its platform and that all use would run through Unity AI Gateway, its layer for security, observability, and cost controls. (databricks.com) That pairing shows where the market is moving: model access is no longer just about raw capability, but also about logging, budget limits, and policy controls for employees and agents. Databricks said customers can apply centralized governance “from day one” across agents and applications. (databricks.com) OpenAI’s product page places GPT-5.5 above GPT-5.4 in a rapid sequence of releases that included GPT-5.4 mini and nano in March and GPT-5.4 earlier in April. The company’s product newsroom shows GPT-5.5 arriving one week after GPT-5.4. (openai.com) (openai.com) For companies building on OpenAI’s models, the immediate question is less whether GPT-5.5 exists than where it is worth paying for. OpenAI is selling a model meant to do more work on a computer, and partners like Databricks are selling the controls needed to keep that work inside enterprise guardrails. (openai.com) (openai.com) (databricks.com)
