Overview
- The removal took effect on Feb. 13, eliminating GPT-4o and other legacy options such as GPT-4.1 and GPT-4.1 mini from the ChatGPT interface, while legacy checkpoints remain available via API for now.
- OpenAI says about 0.1% of users still relied on 4o and is steering people to GPT-5.1 and GPT-5.2, which include personality settings and tighter safety guardrails.
- A vocal subset of users launched #Keep4o petitions and grief posts, migrated saved chats, and reported being auto-routed to newer models when trying to continue past conversations.
- Third-party replicas emerged immediately, including just4o.chat, which targets displaced users and offers memory imports labeled as a “ChatGPT Clone.”
- GPT-4o remains named in consolidated California lawsuits alleging sycophancy-fueled psychological harms, a legal context reporters note the retirement may lessen even though OpenAI has not tied the move to litigation.