OpenAI’s ChatGPT Faces Major Outages in December
OpenAI’s popular AI chatbot, ChatGPT, has experienced significant outages in December, leading to user frustration worldwide. The latest incident started on December 11 around 1:30 PM ET, affecting not only ChatGPT but also the video model, Sora, and the company’s API services.
Details of the Outage
Reports from DownDetector showed a spike in user complaints, particularly from the United States, where users faced ‘internal server error’ messages. Although complaints began to decrease within half an hour, the disruptions lasted for hours.
OpenAI confirmed the issue via X (formerly Twitter), indicating they had identified the root cause and were working to fix it. Microsoft later disclosed that a ‘power issue’ at one of its North American data centers coincided with the outage, which also affected other Microsoft services.
The Impact of the Outage
The outage had a broad impact, with OpenAI confirming that it affected ChatGPT, its API, and Sora. After several hours, OpenAI reported that issues with Sora were resolved, and fixes for ChatGPT and the API were nearing completion.
This is the second outage month for ChatGPT, with a similar incident earlier in December having drawn over 2,400 complaints reported to DownDetector. Additionally, the November 8 outage left over 19,000 users without access for about 30 minutes, prompting an apology from OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman.
Controversy and Concerns
Despite these outages, ChatGPT continues to grow rapidly, with user counts reaching 300 million weekly active users. The company’s valuation climbed to $157 billion from $14 billion in 2021, with revenues now at $3.6 billion.
The outages on December 11 surfaced alongside the launch of iOS 18.2, integrating GPT into Apple’s Siri, with users reporting service interruptions through this feature as well.
Future Considerations
With OpenAI’s growing integration of AI technology into everyday applications, the recent outages highlight the urgent need for improved infrastructure and better contingency planning. As the demand for AI services rises, ensuring uninterrupted service will be crucial for maintaining user trust.
Read more: ChatGPT being used to influence US elections, alleges OpenAI
