The ambitious strategy of OpenAI to close 2024 with an impressive series of announcements was overshadowed by a ChatGPT outage that lasted several hours. This failure occurred in the context of intense competition with Google and its Gemini model, which just hours earlier had unveiled its latest update.
What happened? Why did ChatGPT go down?
The first reports came in after 5:30 PM on December 11. Complaints began to surface on Downdetector and social media. Google searches saw a surge in terms like “ChatGPT down” and “ChatGPT outage.”
An hour later, OpenAI confirmed via its X account, formerly Twitter, that its service was experiencing issues, that the problem had been identified, and that a solution was expected soon.
It wasn’t until several hours later that OpenAI announced via an X post that ChatGPT, the Sora video generator, and the programming interface for developers were back online after hours of downtime.
READ ALSO. When will ChatGPT be back up? This is what OpenAI reported
The outage raised questions about the stability of OpenAI’s infrastructure, especially at such a crucial moment for the company.
According to an OpenAI status page, ChatGPT was down for just over four hours. It’s worth noting that a similar outage in June lasted more than five hours.
12 Days of OpenAI
OpenAI launched an event called “12 Days of OpenAI,” a bold strategy promising to unveil a new model or feature every weekday for two weeks.
“Every weekday we’ll have a live stream with a launch or demo, some big and some smaller,” announced Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI.
This event follows a year of intense activity for the company, with launches such as GPT-4o, the Advanced Voice Mode, its Premium version, Sora, and ChatGPT Canvas. The strategy aims to cement its position in the artificial intelligence market.
READ ALSO. Sora price: how much does OpenAI’s video generator cost?
Google’s Gemini casts a shadow over OpenAI
The ChatGPT outage coincided with Google’s unveiling of an update to its Gemini model, launching the experimental Gemini 2.0 Flash, now available to all users. This release intensifies the competition as 2024 draws to a close and sets the stage for 2025. While OpenAI strives to maintain interest with its campaign of announcements, Google is advancing its own developments.
ChatGPT and the future of artificial intelligence
Despite the outage, ChatGPT’s growth has been exponential. Sam Altman stated on December 4 that the company’s technology was reaching 300 million active users every week.
Additionally, Apple released new software versions for iPhone, iPad, and Mac featuring ChatGPT integrations.
In October, OpenAI was valued at $157 billion in a funding round involving Microsoft and Nvidia. The company’s meteoric rise since the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022 has marked a milestone in the tech industry. However, the outage highlights the need to bolster its infrastructure to meet growing demand.
2024: The year of generative AI competition
2024 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for generative artificial intelligence, marked by fierce competition between OpenAI and Google.
While OpenAI bets on an ambitious announcement strategy to maintain leadership, Google is advancing with the development and enhancement of Gemini.
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