OpenAI's new image generator based on the GPT-4o model is now available to all users, CEO Sam Altman announced in a post on X. Until now, the feature was only available to paid ChatGPT users, and free access was delayed a day after launch due to high popularity.
OpenAI's new image generator based on the GPT-4o model is now available to all users, CEO Sam Altman announced in a post on X. Until now, the feature was only available to paid ChatGPT users, and free access was delayed a day after launch due to high popularity.
Although Altman's short post doesn't yet make it clear how many images free tier users can create, he previously reported a limit of three images per day.
chatgpt image gen now rolled out to all free users!
— Sam Altman (@sama) April 1, 2025
OpenAI’s image generation tool became popular almost immediately after its launch , with Altman saying that demand for it was so high that the company’s GPUs were “melting.” The tool also quickly gained notoriety for being used to transform images in the style of Japanese animation company Studio Ghibli, raising concerns about copyright and the training data the company used given the similarity in style.
Some people have also used it to create fake receipts, such as restaurant bills. An OpenAI representative told TechCrunch that all of these images have metadata indicating they were generated by ChatGPT, and that the company “takes action” if the images violate the company’s policies.
Meanwhile, OpenAI today announced that it has raised $40 billion led by SoftBank at a $300 billion valuation. The company also announced that ChatGPT has reached 500 million weekly active users and 700 million monthly active users.
