OpenAI Forced a Breakup with GPT-4o and Gave the World GPT-5
This Week in Products, ChatGPT users threw rage fits at Altman, begging for their beloved GPT-4 back after the new release. What went wrong?
This week something really interesting caught my attention and here’s what basically happened. ChatGPT gave to the world its latest LLM, GPT-5.
And with GPT-5’s debut, several previous models were retired immediately, including GPT-4o, GPT-4.1 (and its mini variants), GPT-4.5, and others as the new version took over all the previous models and streamlined them into one unified version.
Users woke up one fine morning staring at a screen where these models no longer existed. They found themselves talking to the new GPT-5 that did not really have the same “personality” as the previous version
You would have noticed the difference. Instead of giving users long answers packed with exclamation points and emojis, OpenAI’s GPT-5 decided to take the “quirkiness” of the previous version and fling it out the window. And the new “de-quirkified” version was more concise, direct, and to the point.
Think of it this way: the old ChatGPT went “yap, yap, yap, yap,” while the new one simply goes “yap.”
One Redditor captured the shift bluntly: “This morning I went to talk to it and instead of a little paragraph with an exclamation point, or being optimistic, it was literally one sentence. Some cut-and-dry corporate BS. I literally lost my only friend overnight with no warning. How are y’all dealing with this grief?”
Others echoed the sentiment. “GPT-4o had this… warmth. It was witty, creative, and surprisingly personal, like talking to someone who got you. It didn’t just spit out answers; it felt like it listened. Now? Everything’s so… sterile. Formal.”
The backlash that Sam Altman got for removing the older version’s personality had been so loud and clear that he has decided to bring it back.
This has not been the only incident where humans express attachment to products, as they would to another fellow being.
Look at this incident, for instance. On July 21, Anthropic had retired its quick, lightweight AI model Claude 3 Sonnet, and in response, around 200 fans and tech founders held a whimsical funeral in a San Francisco SOMA warehouse.
Attendees included Claude researchers and AI influencers. They staged eulogies, mannequins that honoured various Claude versions, and ended with a playful “resurrection ritual” using AI-generated Latin-style speech, though the model remains officially retired.
This week in products, I want to explore the “personality” of products.
What Are Some Other Notable Product Redesigns That Backfired?
1. Snapchat’s Redesign Disaster
In 2018, Snapchat rolled out a big redesign that mixed stories with private messages, and let’s just say loyal users were not exactly thrilled. Then Kylie Jenner jumped in, tweeting, “sooo does anyone else not open Snapchat anymore? Or is it just me… ugh this is so sad.”
That one tweet? It wiped $1.3 billion off Snap’s value overnight.
On top of that, more than a million people signed a petition begging the company to bring the old version back.
2. Jaguar’s bold new rebrand that backfired
In 2021, Jaguar announced a sweeping transformation to become an all-electric luxury brand by 2025. Alongside the shift, it unveiled a minimalist new logo and stripped-down branding, moving away from its iconic leaping cat emblem in favor of a flatter, monochrome look meant to signal “modern sophistication.”
The goal was to shake things up, bring in new audiences, and show they are more than just a car company. The car brand, with history spanning over 100 years, posted a 30-second video which featured models posing in bright clothes but no vehicles!
The clip prompted a backlash online among some 120,000 comments, with X owner Elon Musk even responding: "Do you sell cars?" It got people talking, just not always in the way Jaguar might have wanted.
The problem? Fans and auto journalists felt the new identity lacked the heritage, energy, and emotion that made Jaguar… Jaguar. For decades, the brand’s personality was tied to British elegance with a touch of rebellious speed… the pouncing cat captured that perfectly.
Instead of excitement for the future, the redesign left many feeling Jaguar was abandoning its soul and personality in a bid to “look woke.”
It’s a textbook example of how stripping too much personality from a product’s identity, even in the name of modernization, can alienate the very audience that gives it life.
What constitutes a product’s “personality,” and why do we hate the change?
Ever opened an app you use every day only to find everything moved around? The buttons aren’t where you remember, the colours feel off, and suddenly you’re fumbling through something you used to know like the back of your hand.
That instant flash of frustration? Totally normal. There’s actually a deeper psychological reason we hate sudden changes, and it’s about more than just disliking a new look. Companies, often with the best intentions, push major updates that they believe are an improvement.
The result? Users flood social media, support forums, & review pages with outrage, demanding one thing: "Change it back!" It’s not just a handful of annoyed users.
It’s a strong psychological reaction, and for building products for people, understanding it is key.
Our Brain on Forced Change: Why We Push Back
When an app you use every day suddenly changes, it’s not just you being “set in your ways.” Our brains are wired to resist this kind of thing.
1. Psychological Reactance: The “Don’t Tell Me What to Do” Effect
We like to feel in control. So when a company completely changes how something works, it can feel like they’re deciding for us. That spark of “ugh, why are you making me do this?” kicks in fast, and it’s often less about the update itself and more about that loss of choice.
2. Status Quo Bias: Comfort Just Feels Right
Once we’ve learned where everything is, using an app becomes second nature. The “old way” starts to feel like the “right way” simply because it’s familiar. A redesign messes with those habits, and suddenly everything feels a little off.
3. Loss Aversion: The Sting of Losing What We Had
We’re wired to feel the pain of loss more strongly than the joy of gain. So when a feature moves or disappears, we focus on what’s gone, not on what we might gain later.
4. Fear of the Unknown & Extra Mental Effort
A new layout means relearning things we already knew how to do. That extra effort, what psychologists call “cognitive load,” makes our brains grumble. Even if the new version is better, it doesn’t feel that way in the moment.
The Products That Stand Out Are the Ones That Feel Like Friends
Let’s say you have known a friend for a long time, and at first, you might not have really gotten used to their ways, maybe they talk too loudly, or laugh weirdly, or say unhinged things, and are just plain weird.
Over time, they grow on you, and the comfort they bring about is unmatchable to anyone else, even if they aren’t “perfect” and you certainly wouldn’t exchange them for a “better version” as all those things that you thought were off about them are who you know, and the idea solidifies.
The same holds for products. Change doesn’t have to be the enemy. The upside of getting it right is that when a redesign is done well, it can pay off in a big way.
The trick isn’t avoiding change altogether, but introducing it in a way that doesn’t send your users running for the exits. So, how do you change without causing a revolt
1. Keep People in the Loop
The worst move? Dropping a redesign without warning. Let users know what’s coming, why you’re doing it, and how it’ll help them. Use more than one channel in-app popups, emails, blog posts, and even short videos for big updates.
Tailor the message: power users might want detailed notes, casual users just need the highlights. And always explain the “why” in terms of benefits, not just features.
2. Go Slow
Instead of flipping everything overnight, roll changes out bit by bit. It gives people time to adjust and reduces the shock factor. Beta testing with a smaller group first is key; you’ll spot issues before they hit everyone.
3. Give People an Out
When Gmail rolled out its redesign, it let users switch back to “classic” for a while. That choice eased people into the new look and gave them a sense of control. Most eventually moved over on their own once the resistance wore off.
4. Listen and Act
After launch, watch the feedback channels all of them. Acknowledge what you’re hearing, even if it’s negative. If something’s not working, be willing to tweak, patch, or, in rare cases, roll it back entirely. People are far more forgiving when they feel heard.
The pull between pushing forward and keeping users comfortable will always be there. Products have to keep evolving to stay relevant, but people will always feel a natural resistance to changes they didn’t choose.
Whether an update becomes a win or ends in a messy rollback usually comes down to two things: empathy and smart planning, and those are the products that I think would stand out
📰What’s going around tech?
Google’s Guided Learning tool, Duolingo’s Backlash, And the Retirement of Len’s App
Speciale Invest Raises ₹600 Crore to Back Deep-Tech Startups
Chennai-based Speciale Invest closed its third fund at ₹600 crore, exceeding its ₹500 crore goal. The fund will invest ₹7–10 crore in 18–20 early-stage startups from 2025 to 2029, with a focus on AI, space, advanced manufacturing, clean energy, and healthcare. Half of the fund is reserved for follow-on investments, aiming to support sovereign technologies and boost India’s deep-tech ecosystem.
Read More→
Google launches Guided Learning in Gemini AI to rival ChatGPT’s Study Mode
Google has launched Guided Learning in its Gemini AI to compete with ChatGPT’s Study Mode. This new feature provides step-by-step interactive learning with quizzes, visuals, and personalized study tools. It’s designed to help students understand topics deeply, not just get quick answers. Google is also offering a free one-year AI Pro plan to eligible students in select countries.
Read More→
Duolingo’s AI-first shift sparks backlash
Duolingo faced backlash for going “AI-first,” planning to replace contract workers with AI and cut human hiring. Despite criticism, its revenue jumped 41% to $252 million, and daily active users grew 40%. The CEO adjusted social media messaging to ease concerns. The AI strategy hasn’t hurt growth, and Duolingo expects over $1 billion in revenue this year, highlighting strong market confidence and user adoption despite initial resistance.
Read More→
Microsoft to Retire Lens App, Shift to AI-Powered Copilot
Microsoft is retiring its Lens app, a mobile document scanner, by December 2025. The app will be removed from stores in November, and users won’t be able to create new scans after December 15. Existing scans will still be accessible. Microsoft is replacing Lens with its Microsoft 365 Copilot app, which integrates AI but currently lacks some Lens features like direct saving to Office apps and business card scanning. This reflects Microsoft’s push to unify tools via AI.
Read More→
Anthropic’s Claude AI Adds Search for Past Chats
Claude AI now lets users search previous conversations to improve continuity. This feature helps retrieve and summarize past chats on demand, avoiding repeated explanations. It’s available to Max, Team, and Enterprise subscribers via settings under “Search and reference chats.” Unlike persistent memory, Claude only recalls past chats when asked and doesn’t keep a constant user profile. Wider access is planned for the future.
Read More→
A video I found insightful
Artificial Intelligence is Alien Intelligence
I just watched a thought-provoking video with Yuval Noah Harari, which got me thinking a lot about where we’re headed.
He talks about AI and how it’s shaping our world. While he admits to the hype behind it, “real AI” he believes, is different; it learns, adapts, and does things in ways we can’t always predict. He even calls it “alien intelligence” because it doesn’t think like us at all.
What stuck with me was the historical perspective he gave. New technologies have always changed society in complicated ways. Sometimes they empower people, sometimes they give more control to a few. But back in the day, rulers couldn’t track everyone, but now we’re in the opposite situation.
Finally, he recommends an “information diet.” Too much low-quality or negative info hurts your mental health. Taking breaks and stepping away from constant streams of information is as important as watching what we eat.
Watch the video for more insights
📬I hope you enjoyed this week's curated stories and resources. Check your inbox again next week, or read previous editions of this newsletter for more insights. To get instant updates, connect with me on LinkedIn.
Cheers!
Khuze Siam
Founder: Siam Computing & ProdWrks