OpenAI has officially initiated a major platform transition by permanently switching off its widely discussed GPT-4o artificial intelligence model. On February 13, 2026, the company reached its confirmed switch-off date, formally retiring the controversial 4o AI model from the main ChatGPT interface. According to reporting by the Times of India, this scheduled retirement clears the path for the next generation of artificial intelligence capabilities, with GPT-5.2 officially set to take over as the new default model for the platform. This sweeping action directly follows reports from CNBC published on January 29, 2026, which first detailed that OpenAI would officially retire GPT-4o from ChatGPT the following month.
The permanent transition from the 4o version to the new default GPT-5.2 represents a significant milestone for the ChatGPT platform and its user base. In addition to targeting the specific GPT-4o model, OpenAI’s official index pages confirm that the company is simultaneously retiring older models from the system infrastructure. Furthermore, the platform’s official help section details the formal retiring of GPT-4o alongside other ChatGPT models. To properly manage this technical transition, OpenAI has formally updated its platform documentation, explicitly listing the model changes within its platform deprecations section.
Loyal Users Grieving the ChatGPT Switch-Off
While the corporate transition to the new GPT-5.2 model has proceeded exactly according to the confirmed timeline, the final retirement of the GPT-4o model has generated an overwhelmingly emotional response from the broader community. Despite Bloomberg describing the 4o AI model as controversial in its nature, the financial publication clearly emphasizes that the retirement action is actively angering a highly loyal user base. The deep attachment to the outgoing model remains highly visible across various social networks and media reporting channels.
According to technology reporting from Mashable, users are heartbroken over the breaking news of OpenAI permanently retiring the ChatGPT GPT-4o model. The intense emotional toll of the confirmed February 13 switch-off date is further highlighted by TechRadar, which reports that individuals are actively stating they are “grieving” the final loss of the model. The raw intensity of these emotional reactions serves to underscore the incredibly complex relationship between the platform’s loyal users and the controversial AI model that OpenAI has now completely switched off.
The “Keep4o” Campaign and Fresh User Fury
The heartbreak and profound grief expressed by the user base have rapidly evolved into an organized, vocal pushback against OpenAI’s executive decision. TechRadar reports that the company’s firm stance has sparked fresh fury among the community at large. Angry users are no longer just expressing their general dissatisfaction online; they are actively organizing together and backing a dedicated movement known as the “keep4o” campaign. The explicit goal of this community-driven campaign is to heavily pressure OpenAI to ultimately restore the switched-off model for public use.
This fresh fury extends far beyond simple campaign slogans, directly threatening the core of the platform’s paid subscription model. According to reporting by TechRadar, the confirmed switch-off date has actively prompted many users to publicly declare that it is “time to cancel” their ongoing subscriptions. By threatening direct financial pushback through widespread account cancellations, these angry users are attempting to leverage their premium subscription status to force the permanent restoration of the GPT-4o model. TechRadar explicitly notes that the company is sparking fury by retiring the model “again,” suggesting a tense history regarding the constant availability of this specific model version.
Community Discussions on Working With GPT-4o
As the broader, non-technical user base focuses heavily on the grassroots “keep4o” campaign and the mounting threat of subscription cancellations, technical users are actively searching for alternative workarounds. On the official OpenAI community forum, dedicated discussion threads are focused entirely on the complex logistics of working with GPT-4o immediately after the February 13, 2026 deadline has passed. These active community discussions clearly indicate a strong desire among certain technical users to somehow maintain direct access to the retired model, even as the newer GPT-5.2 officially takes over as the platform’s default standard.
The combination of the newly updated platform deprecations documentation, the official help articles confirming the changes, and the firm February 13 switch-off date leaves the loyal user base facing a definitive platform transition. Whether angry users are actively backing the campaign to restore it, navigating the complexities of the platform’s deprecations page, or exploring detailed community discussions for potential post-deadline access, the final retirement of the controversial 4o model remains a highly polarizing event.
