ChatGPT Launches o3-Mini AI Model for Free Users


OpenAI CEO Sam Altman made several announcements for ChatGPT users, revealing that the o3 series of AI models, which was unveiled in December 2024 as a research preview, will now see its first global release. Altman stated that the o3-mini AI model will be available to both paid subscribers and free-tier users of the platform.



Additionally, the CEO also disclosed that the recently released AI agent, Operator, would soon be available to ChatGPT Plus users.


OpenAI Launches First o3 AI Model

In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), Altman revealed that the latest series of large language models (LLMs) focused on logic, the o3 series, would be accessible to both paid and free-tier users of the AI chatbot. Notably, o3 is the successor to the company’s o1 series of models.


OpenAI introduced the o3 series, including both o3 and o3-mini, during a 12-day holiday shipping schedule in December. At that time, the AI company stated that the new AI models would offer improved performance over previous versions and be capable of handling more complex tasks in coding, mathematics, and natural language processing.


However, the full set of capabilities and benchmark evaluations were not disclosed.


Altman has now emphasized that the free-tier users of ChatGPT will also gain access to the o3-mini model, though it is likely to come with high restrictions. For example, the o1 model in the free tier was available with a limit of five queries per day. In contrast, OpenAI’s CEO revealed that Plus subscribers will receive 100 queries per day with the o3-mini.


Additionally, Altman made multiple future announcements for ChatGPT Plus subscribers. First, OpenAI will soon offer its Operator AI agent to paid users. The client is currently available to Pro subscribers in the U.S. as a research preview. It can independently execute tasks online based on user prompts, such as booking tickets, reserving a table at a restaurant, or purchasing products online.


Altman also promised that the next release of the AI agent from the company would be available to Plus users on the first day of release. This was not the case with Operator, which was initially exclusive to Pro subscribers.