ChatGPT-4.5 is here for Pro users now and Plus users next week, and I can't wait to try it

OpenAI’s latest AI model promises better conversations, fewer mistakes, and an eerily human emotional intelligence

28 Feb 2025, 08:14 · TechRadar

News By Eric Hal Schwartz published 28 February 2025

(Image credit: ChatGPT)

OpenAI has launched GPT-4.5, but only for ChatGPT Pro users right now. Plus users get it next week
GPT-4.5 is supposedly smarter and more emotionally intuitive than earlier AI models but lack deep reasoning power
OpenAI claims GPT-4.5 will provide better conversations and fewer hallucinations than ever

OpenAI has officially launched GPT-4.5, the most advanced version of its AI models, but it has no deep reasoning ability, because it's designed to be an all-purpose model. The latest model is available on ChatGPT, though for now, you'll need to be a Pro subscriber to access it.

The model is being rolled out as a “research preview,” which means it's imperfect, and OpenAI hopes users will help sort out any bugs or awkwardness. Even so, the company claims early testers report that GPT-4.5 feels more natural, intuitive, and emotionally intelligent. This is a welcome upgrade for those of us who have ever asked ChatGPT for information and felt like the response was just an outdated Wikipedia page.

GPT-4.5 is supposed to be even better at understanding context and recognizing social cues than its predecessors. The overall feeling is supposedly all but indistinguishable from chatting with a real person. It certainly seems to have impressed OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who called it "the first model that feels like talking to a thoughtful person" in a post on X. Altman added that GPT-4.5 will come to ChatGPT Plus and Team subscribers next week, but you'll need to pay $200 a month to play with it for now.

Fewer hallucinations, more empathy

Notably, GPT-4.5 is not only supposedly smarter and more creative, but it should also produce fewer hallucinations. That last part is particularly important because hallucinations were often a sticking point for tentative ChatGPT users who didn't want to rely on a chatbot that might confidently make things up. Performance-wise, GPT-4.5 is supposed to be a big step up and really good with general knowledge. However, that doesn't mean it can handle coding and problem-solving as well as OpenAI's o1 and o3 models or rival options like DeepSeek’s R1.

Instead, GPT-4.5 specializes in empathy, with a high emotional quotient (EQ). AI still can’t feel things, but GPT-4.5 is supposed to be better at picking up on nuance. If you’re venting about a bad day, it won’t just reply, "I’m sorry you feel that way.” Instead, it’s designed to offer more thoughtful responses. Whether that makes it feel more like a conversation partner or just a particularly well-trained customer service bot remains to be seen. As for how to measure the EQ, OpenAI quite literally depended on "vibes."

"By vibes, really mean the model's EQ, how collaborative it feels and how warm its tone is," OpenAI engineer Rapha Gontijo Lopes explained in a livestream demonstration of GPT-4.5. "We measured this by selecting an opinionated set of prompts and screening our trainers for the ones that most align with our vibes."

If you’re a ChatGPT Pro user, you’ll be among the first to see whether GPT-4.5 truly has the vibes of a human and lives up to the hype. If you're not spending quite that much, you'll get a chance soon enough. Either way, with Amazon announcing a more chatty, AI-powered Alexa+ yesterday, the AI arms race just heated up again, and this time it's looking like the chatbots will be able to mimic how you feel more realistically than ever.

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