OpenAI’s ChatGPT has received a major upgrade to the new GPT-4o model, also known as Omni. It is a true multimodal AI capable of understanding text, image, video and audio with ease. It’s very fast and can eventually talk to you.
Its main benefit right now is that it brings massive reasoning, processing and natural language capabilities to a free version of ChatGPT for the first time. As part of the Spring Update announcement, the company said it wants to make better AI more widely accessible.
The release will not happen immediately, but will be available gradually. Which features are available now and coming soon? It’s very easy to access the new model once it’s applied to your account. Here’s how.
Accessing GPT-4o in ChatGPT
The address for ChatGPT has changed, moving from chat.openai.com to chatgpt.com, referring to AI as a product rather than an experiment. If you have 4o access to your account, it’s available in the mobile app and online.
There is also a Mac app that has started rolling out to some users. Be wary of links as they are used by scammers as a way to get malware onto computers. The best option for now is to wait for an email or notification from OpenAI with a link.
Even if you have a link to the app, it won’t let you use it until you have access to your OpenAI account. You will get the error “You do not have access”.
What features are available in GPT-4o today?
For now, when you log into ChatGPT, you get access to the chat version of GPT-4o and no advanced voice or video functionality, which will be “rolling out” in the coming weeks, starting with Plus and group accounts.
Free account users will notice a huge change as GPT-4o is not only better than the previous 3.5 model in ChatGPT but also gets a boost in GPT-4. Users can now run code snippets, analyze images and text files, and use custom GPT chatbots.
On mobile, you still have access to ChatGPT Voice, but this is the version that launched last year. Having a conversation, ending it, and checking to see if everything is transcribed for the chat – that’s old fashioned. The new model does not require this step because it understands speech, emotion and human interaction on its own without first converting it to text.
1. Login to ChatGPT
Whether you are using the paid or free version of ChatGPT First thing to do is login. Visit the website or download the app and Connect to your account. If you don’t have one Simply register.
2. Check your model choices
There will be one A drop-down menu at the top of the screen. It will have a list of models. On the website, it says GPT-4o is already selected. But maybe GPT-4 or GPT-3.5 as well. If GPT-4o doesn’t appear, you don’t have access to the model yet.
On mobile, if you have access, it will say ChatGPT 4o in the middle of the navigation bar at the top of the screen.
3. Start a chat
If you have access Simply start chatting With GPT-4o you are the same as with GPT-4. There are payment limits which are very low in the free plan. This means you can only send a certain number per day. Once this is done, you can continue the conversation with GPT-4 or GPT-3.5.
4. Change the model in the chat
You can also change the AI model you use through chat. For example, if you want to manage how many messages you send using GPT-4o, you can start a chat with GPT-3.5, then select the glow icon at the end of the reply.
This will open the sample menu If you select GPT-4o, which is necessary for a more complex math query, the next response will be sent using GPT-4o.
5. Upload the files
If you have GPT-4o and are on the free plan, you can send the files to be analyzed. These can be images, videos or even PDFs. You can then ask any questions about the content.