August 14, 2025
The AI Backlash Starts, as ChatGPT Rolls Back on Scrapping Previous Model
The endless flood of promises promoting AI as a tool to solve all your business problems continue across technology news sites and vendor marketing material. But, in the rapidly-fading afterglow of ChatGPT 5’s launch, the wheels seem be coming off that hype train.
Generally, the new versions of AI, notably OpenAI’s ChatGPT offer larger model sizes, adding deeper contextual understanding, improved research features, greater reasoning, access to knowledge and refined feature sets.
However, the latest promises from Sam Altman’s latest launch video were met with prompt derision from users. From the personal level where people have built up relations with their AIs, only to see them wiped out in the latest version to business demand for transparency and continuity, the AI world is ringing up an increasingly sour tone from users.
Update: In a move that will surprise no one, OpenAI has backed down on removing the last version from the current release, so users will soon rejoice in that familiar feel. However, the rollback to GPT-40 will be available only for paid users, according to Altman posting on Reddit.
This will solve the immediate problem for some, but doesn’t make the wider issue go away, what happens when users are happy with their AI and don’t need more updates.
Views from the Business World on the New ChatGPT
Speaking for the world, Jessica posting on Trustpilot said “GPT-5 feels like a downgrade. It’s slower, constantly stuck in “Thinking” mode, has ridiculous tight message caps, and breaks ongoing threads by forcing delays. GPT-4o was fast, responsive, and worked perfectly for my workflow — removing it without giving users a choice makes the Plus plan worse, not better. Bring back GPT-4o as an option.”
Scientist Gary Marcus, posting on Substack, noted “GenerativeAI had a truly bad week. The late and underwhelming arrival of GPT-5 wasn’t even the worst part. But before we get to the worst part (spoiler alert: a new research paper that I will discuss towards the end), let’s review GPT-5’s shambolic debut.” Before going on with a list of well-defined criticisms.
On the business side of AI, Freshworks’ Customer Success Director, Karthik Ananth, continues to highlight the practical approach, “Don’t oversell what AI can do, and be transparent about how you’re using AI.”
The functional problems with ChatGPT 5 will be fixed over time, but the trust, reputation and broader AI options mean users are less likely to stay loyal. Many business products take a neutral approach to AI, allowing their customers to use the model of the their choice, we’ll see how many drop ChatGPT in the near future.
The State of CX vs AI
Beyond the immediate push back, business continues to accept and adopt AI, a fresh Verizon report “2025 CX Annual Insights Report” highlights how the workforce is transforming business and where AI needs to improve.
Current customer demand drives job security with 88% satisfied with a human-led approach vs. 60% for AI-only interactions. Showing how human roles remain essential.
The future of CX isn’t about AI replacing humans; it’s about using AI to make human interactions better,” says Daniel Lawson, SVP, Global Solutions at Verizon Business. “Businesses that use AI to pre-empt customer needs, empower their employees, and enhance personalization while respecting privacy will be the market leaders of tomorrow.” We’ll have more on this report soon!
The AI missteps story will repeat itself as pushy and market-share greedy AI companies lose sight of what their customers want, trying to keep up with their hype.
