OpenAI Announces Plans to Release First Open-Weight Language Model Since 2019

OpenAI plans to release a new 'open' language model in the coming months | TechCrunch

OpenAI says that it intends to release its first "open" language model since GPT‑2 "in the coming months." That's according to a feedback form the company published on its website Monday. The form, which OpenAI is inviting "developers, researchers, and [members of] the broader community" to fill out, includes questions like "What would you like to see in an open-weight model from OpenAI?" and "What open models have you used in the past?" "We're excited to collaborate with developers, researchers, and the broader community to gather inputs and make this model as useful as possible," OpenAI wrote on its website. "If you're interested in joining a feedback session with the OpenAI team, please let us know [in the form] below." OpenAI is facing increasing pressure from rivals such as Chinese AI lab DeepSeek, which have adopted an "open" approach to launching models. In contrast to OpenAI's strategy, these "open" competitors make their models available to the AI community for experimentation and, in some cases, commercialization. In a recent Reddit Q&A, Altman said that he thinks OpenAI has been on the wrong side of history when it comes to open-sourcing its technologies. "[I personally think we need to] figure out a different open source strategy," Altman said. "Not everyone at OpenAI shares this view, and it's also not our current highest priority ... We will produce better models [going forward], but we will maintain less of a lead than we did in previous years."

Sam Altman Says OpenAI Will Release an 'Open Weight' AI Model This Summer

"We are excited to release a powerful new open-weight language model with reasoning in the coming months," Altman wrote on X. Altman said in the post that the company has been thinking about releasing an open weight model for some time, adding "now it feels important to do." The move is partly a response to the runaway success of the R1 model from Chinese company DeepSeek, as well as the popularity of Meta's Llama models. OpenAI may also feel the need to show that it can train the new model more cheaply, since DeepSeek's model was purportedly trained at a fraction of the cost of most large AI models. OpenAI currently makes its AI available through a chatbot and through the cloud. R1, Llama and other open weight models can be downloaded for free and modified. A model's weights refers to the values inside a large neural network -- something that is set during training. Open weight models are cheaper to use and can also be tailored for sensitive use cases, like handling highly confidential information. Steven Heidel, a member of the technical staff at OpenAI, reposted Altman's announcement and added "we're releasing a model this year that you can run on your own hardware." OpenAI today also posted a webpage inviting developers to apply for early access to the forthcoming model. Altman said in his post that the company would host events for developers with early prototypes of the new model in the coming weeks. Meta was the first major AI company to pursue a more open approach, releasing the first version of Llama in July 2023. A growing number of open weight AI models are now available. Some researchers note that Llama and some other models are not as transparent as they could be because the training data and other details are still kept secret. Meta also imposes a license that limits other companies' ability to profit from applications and tools built using Llama.

OpenAI Just Teased a New 'Open-Weights' AI Model: Here's What That Means

OpenAI, the company behind the popular chatbot, ChatGPT, is building a new AI model. The model will be an "open-weights" language model with reasoning, according to CEO Sam Altman who tweeted about the development on Monday. An "open-weights" AI model is a kind of middle ground between open- and closed-source approaches. Weights are how AI models learn and make connections -- certain characteristics or connections are given more weight in an effort to reinforce specific information. An open-weights model means that its weights are publicly available, as the Federal Trade Commission puts it. That means that users would be able to see these weights and change them without retraining the model on new data. Open-weights models are usually cheaper for companies to use and allows them to customize the models. For example, a business could upload its internal documents to an existing open-weights model to incorporate that information in its results without having to build the whole thing from scratch. But open-weights models are not the same thing as open-source models. Like the name implies, an open-source model lets you see what it's made of, the source code, sometimes in addition to how it's trained and weighted. In an open-weights model, you can see how the model makes connections but not necessarily its underlying code or training content. It's all about the degree of openness. Given OpenAI's track record of not disclosing what it uses to train ChatGPT, the new open-weight model is likely to give folks a glimpse behind the curtain, but not much else. AI companies are in a heated race as they each develop a variety of models for different uses. OpenAI's new model is primed to be a competitor to Meta's Llama models, which are open-source. Mark Zuckerberg has repeatedly said that open-source is the correct path forward for AI development. The new model also comes as Chinese AIs like DeepSeek fight for the top spot. DeepSeek's newest V3 model is reportedly leading the pack, and it's also an open-weights model. Open-weights and open-source models could threaten OpenAI's subscription models by providing businesses with cheaper, more customized AI tools, so the company appears to be making moves to catch up to its competition. It's unclear exactly when the new model will be released. For now, OpenAI is inviting developers to submit feedback about what would make the model the most useful for them. You can contribute that feedback in this form on OpenAI's website.

OpenAI is planning on launching its first open-weight model in years

OpenAI is currently on a mission to announce as much news as possible. After revealing new image models, massive rule changes, and new features for free users, the AI giant has also revealed plans for an entirely new model. While details remain shrouded in mystery, Sam Altman announced via X that this will be an open-weight language model -- the first since GPT-2 launched way back in 2019. In his announcement post, Altman said "Before release, we will evaluate this model according to our preparedness framework, like we would for any other model. And we will do extra work given that we know this model will be modified post-release". So, what is an open-weight model and why are there plans to put in more work than usual before it is launched? When we talk about AI models, there are three main types that come up: closed, open source, and open weights. Closed types are the ones that we see most often. These include big names like ChatGPT and Google Gemini. They can be used via apps and websites the company offers, but there is no interaction outside of this. Open source is where the company makes all of the code used to create, train, and run the AI model public. This allows the public to understand how the model is built and trained and use the code to train their own models. Finishing off the list are open-weight models. These can be downloaded for free and modified. A model's "weights" are the numerical parameters learned by the model during training. Think of the weights as all the knowledge a model has. Imagine an AI model as a brain. The weights would be all the neurons connecting pathways together with everything it knows, the connections between thoughts and ideas, and its creative thinking and reasoning. By accessing an open-weight model, it is possible to edit them to work on new or more specific tasks, or even simply analyze the data that is used to train these kinds of models. For the average person, an open-weight model of OpenAI won't be all that exciting. It requires a detailed understanding of AI models and the coding that goes into them, as well as a ridiculous amount of computing power. This isn't to say it won't have far-reaching effects. When large companies release models that are more open to the public, it allows smaller companies to advance their own projects, tweaking an almost-finished model into something entirely different. Open-weight models are cheaper to use and can be tailored for more sensitive use cases, handling highly confidential information, and keeping all of the information for the model on one isolated machine or server. While these models can open up opportunities for innovation, they do also pose a risk. AI can, and has been, misused. Opening models up increases access to a wider group of people who can make dangerous AI models. "Safety is a core focus of our open-weight model's development, from pre-training to release. While open models bring unique challenges, we're guided by our Preparedness Framework and will not release models we believe pose catastrophic risks," said Johannes Heidecke, a member of the OpenAI team in a post on X. "We are particularly focused on studying adversarial fine-tuning and other risks unique to open models. As with all model releases, we're conducting extensive safety testing, both internally and with trusted third-party experts, prior to public release." This decision from OpenAI follows in the footsteps of other big AI models. Deepseek, Meta, and Google have all released open-weight models already and seem committed to pursuing this in the future.

OpenAI to release open-source model as AI economics force strategic shift

Join our daily and weekly newsletters for the latest updates and exclusive content on industry-leading AI coverage. Learn More OpenAI announced plans to release its first "open-weight" language model since 2019, marking a dramatic strategic shift for the company that built its business on proprietary AI systems. Sam Altman, OpenAI's chief executive, revealed the news in a post on X on Monday. "We are excited to release a powerful new open-weight language model with reasoning in the coming months," Mr. Altman wrote. The model would allow developers to run it on their own hardware, departing from OpenAI's cloud-based subscription approach that has driven its revenue. "We've been thinking about this for a long time but other priorities took precedence. Now it feels important to do," Altman added. The announcement follows Altman's admission during a February Reddit Q&A that OpenAI had been "on the wrong side of history" regarding open-source AI -- a statement prompted by January's release of DeepSeek R1, an open-source model from China that reportedly matches OpenAI's performance at just 5-10% of the operating cost. How DeepSeek and Meta created an economic reality OpenAI couldn't ignore OpenAI faces mounting economic pressure in a marketplace increasingly dominated by efficient open-source alternatives. The company reportedly spends $7-8 billion annually on operations, according to AI scholar Kai-Fu Lee, who recently questioned OpenAI's sustainability against competitors with fundamentally different cost structures. "You're spending $7 billion or $8 billion a year, making a massive loss, and here you have a competitor coming in with an open-source model that's for free," Lee said in a Bloomberg Television interview last week, comparing OpenAI's finances with DeepSeek AI. Meta's Llama models have established formidable market presence since their 2023 debut, surpassing one billion downloads as of this March. This widespread adoption demonstrates how quickly the field has shifted toward open models that can be deployed without the recurring costs of API-based services. Clement Delangue, CEO of Hugging Face, celebrated the announcement, writing: "Amazing news for the field and the world. Everyone benefits from open-source AI!" The billion-dollar gamble: Why OpenAI is risking its primary revenue stream OpenAI's move represents a high-stakes bet that could either secure its future relevance or accelerate its financial challenges. By releasing an open model, the company implicitly acknowledges that foundation models are becoming commoditized -- an extraordinary concession from a company that has raised billions on the premise that its proprietary technology would remain superior and exclusive. The economics of AI have shifted dramatically since OpenAI's founding. Training costs have fallen precipitously as hardware efficiency improves and algorithmic innovations like DeepSeek's approach demonstrate that state-of-the-art performance no longer requires Google-scale infrastructure investments. For OpenAI, this creates an existential dilemma: maintain course with increasingly expensive proprietary models or adapt to a market that increasingly views base models as utilities rather than premium products. Their choice to release an open model suggests they've concluded that relevance and ecosystem influence may ultimately prove more valuable than short-term subscription revenue. This decision also reflects the company's growing realization that competitive moats in AI may not lie in the base models themselves, but in the specialized fine-tuning, domain expertise, and application development that build upon them. Balancing openness with responsibility: How OpenAI plans to control what it can't contain OpenAI emphasizes that safety remains central to its approach despite embracing greater openness. "Before release, we will evaluate this model according to our preparedness framework, like we would for any other model. And we will do extra work given that we know this model will be modified post-release," Altman wrote. This represents the fundamental tension in open-weight releases: once published, these models can be modified, fine-tuned, and deployed in ways the original creators never intended. OpenAI's challenge lies in creating guardrails that maintain reasonable safety without undermining the very openness they've promised. The company plans to host developer events to gather feedback and showcase early prototypes, beginning in San Francisco in the coming weeks before expanding to Europe and Asia-Pacific regions. These sessions may provide insight into how OpenAI plans to balance openness with responsibility. Enterprise impact: What CIOs and technical decision makers need to know about OpenAI's strategic shift For enterprise customers, OpenAI's move could significantly reshape AI implementation strategies. Organizations that have hesitated to build critical infrastructure atop subscription-based models now have reason to reconsider their approach. The ability to run models locally addresses persistent concerns around data sovereignty, vendor lock-in, and long-term cost management. This shift particularly matters for regulated industries like healthcare, finance, and government, where data privacy requirements have limited cloud-based AI adoption. Self-hosted models potentially enable these sectors to implement AI in previously restricted contexts, though questions around compute requirements and operational complexity remain unanswered. For existing OpenAI enterprise customers, the announcement creates uncertainty about long-term investment strategies. Those who have built systems atop GPT-4 or o1 APIs must now evaluate whether to maintain that approach or begin planning migrations to self-hosted alternatives -- a decision complicated by the lack of specific details about the forthcoming model's capabilities. Beyond base models: How the AI industry's competitive landscape is fundamentally changing OpenAI's pivot highlights a broader industry trend: the commoditization of foundation models and the shifting focus toward specialized applications. As base models become increasingly accessible, differentiation increasingly happens at the application layer -- creating opportunities for startups and established players alike to build domain-specific solutions. This doesn't mean the race to build better base models has ended. Rather, it suggests that the economics of exclusively proprietary models may no longer be viable for most organizations, including perhaps even OpenAI itself. The field appears to be converging on a hybrid approach where some capabilities remain proprietary while core technologies become more accessible. For competitors like Anthropic and Google's Gemini team, OpenAI's strategy shift creates new pressure to differentiate their offerings or consider similar open releases. The announcement may accelerate an industry-wide recalibration of business models and go-to-market strategies. OpenAI comes full circle: The complicated history of an organization named for openness OpenAI's relationship with open source reflects the contradictions at the heart of the organization. Founded in 2015 as a non-profit with a mission to ensure artificial general intelligence benefited humanity broadly, OpenAI initially championed openness as core to its identity. Early research papers and smaller models like GPT-2 were shared openly with the research community. The creation of OpenAI LP in 2019 marked a pivotal shift toward commercialization and increasingly proprietary approaches. As models like GPT-3 and GPT-4 demonstrated unprecedented capabilities, the company restricted access to both the models themselves and details about their construction. This apparent contradiction between name and practice drew criticism from AI researchers and open-source advocates. Ironically, as OpenAI evolved toward closed systems, competitors like Meta embraced openness, releasing powerful models with fewer restrictions. The success of these open alternatives -- coupled with innovations from newcomers like DeepSeek -- created market pressures that appear to have forced OpenAI to reconsider its approach. "We're excited to see what developers build and how large companies and governments use it where they prefer to run a model themselves," Altman wrote, hinting at the enterprise and public sector applications the company envisions. The company that once defined itself by openness, then built a multi-billion-dollar business on closed systems, now finds itself returning to its roots -- not necessarily by choice, but because the economics of AI have shifted beneath its feet. In an industry that moves at breakneck speed, perhaps the greatest irony is that OpenAI may have finally lived up to its name only after the market left it no alternative.

OpenAI is ready to embrace an open weight AI model strategy

OpenAI is set to be the next open-source AI brand as CEO Sam Altman confirmed on X on Monday that the company will soon release an "open-weight' model that users will be able to run independently. "We are excited to release a powerful new open-weight language model with reasoning in the coming months," Altman said on a post on X. Recommended Videos The company is making this move to keep in step with the Chinese company DeepSeek, which took the AI industry by storm in January with its R1 reasoning model. Similarly, Meta's Llama models have garnered attention among developer communities, Wired noted. Altman's announcement also follows a Reddit AMA in February where he stated that OpenAI was "on the wrong side of history" and that the company needed to reconfigure its open-source strategy. He further detailed in his X post that the open-weight model has been a long thought-out project for OpenAI, and "now it feels important to do." Additionally, during the AMA session, OpenAI's chief product officer, Kevin Weil said there was potential for the company to make its older, less cutting-edge models open-source. He didn't have any specifics about which models could be used for an open source project. There is also the potential that OpenAI created a unique model to show its ability to train AI quickly and cheaply, similar to DeepSeek, Wired noted. Altman also shared a link for developers to sign up and gain early access to the model As we learn more about many AI models, it has become more evident that they are not 100% open source. While the code is available on repositories, various training data and company details are concealed. This evokes the title open-weight more the AI models,instead of open-source, which is being used by DeepSeek, Meta, and now OpenAI.

OpenAI Plans to Release 'Open-Weight' Model with Reasoning Capabilities - Decrypt

OpenAI is jumping back into the open tech AI arena with plans to release a powerful open-weight language model with reasoning abilities in the coming months, CEO Sam Altman said on Monday. "We are planning to release our first open-weight language model since GPT-2," Altman wrote in a post on X. "We've been thinking about this for a long time, but other priorities took precedence. Now it feels important to do." The announcement comes as OpenAI faces growing competition from rivals that include Meta and its Llama family of open-source models; Google's Gemma, which comes with multimodal capabilities; and Chinese AI lab DeepSeek, which recently released an open-source reasoning model that reportedly outperformed OpenAI's o1. A model is open source when its developer shares with the public everything about it -- users have access to the code, training dataset, and architecture, among other things. That gives users the ability to modify and redistribute the model. An open-weight model is less open: users have the ability to fine-tune it, but cannot build it from scratch because they don't have access to key elements such as the training dataset or the architecture. To gather input on what developers actually want, OpenAI published a feedback form on its website and announced plans for developer events starting in San Francisco within weeks, followed by sessions in Europe and the Asia-Pacific regions. "We're excited to collaborate with developers, researchers, and the broader community to gather inputs and make this model as useful as possible," the company said in its announcement. Steven Heidel, who works on the API team at OpenAI, also shared that this model would be able to run locally: "We're releasing a model this year that you can run on your own hardware." He didn't specify how many parameters it would have, the token context window, the dataset, techniques used in the training, or the release license, which could restrict actions like reverse engineering or fine-tuning in specific countries, for example. The announcement today marks a significant departure from OpenAI's recent strategy of keeping its most advanced models locked behind APIs. It also aligns with Altman's recent comments during a Reddit Q&A, where he first shared that the company was pondering the idea of releasing a full open-source model. "Yes, we are discussing (releasing some model weights and publishing some research)," Altman wrote. "I personally think we have been on the wrong side of history here and need to figure out a different open source strategy; not everyone at OpenAI shares this view, and it's also not our current highest priority." The upcoming model will feature reasoning capabilities comparable to OpenAI's o3-mini, according to Altman's post. This would make it the most capable open reasoning model to date, beating DeepSeek R1.

OpenAI to release new 'open' language model in coming months

OpenAI is gearing up to release its first open-weight language model since GPT-2 "in the coming months". That's according to a feedback form on the company's website that asked developers, researchers and the broader community for insight on how to "make this model as useful as possible". CEO Sam Altman expanded on the decision on the social media platform X, saying that the launch "feels important to do". Before its release, the company will evaluate the model with their "preparedness framework" like they do with others, Altman added. The company will also be hosting developer sessions in the US, Europe, and Asia Pacific to "gather feedback" and play with early prototypes. An open-weight model means the numerical parameters that impact the AI's output are public, but the training data may not be. The move comes two months after Altman admitted on Reddit that OpenAI was "on the wrong side of history" on more open models and that the company "needs to figure out a different open source strategy". Chinese AI firm DeepSeek, widely considered to be one of OpenAI's competitors, has an open approach to its models. Its large language model, R1, is extremely fast and was low-cost to produce, which stunned the tech world when it was released in January. OpenAI said in January that they had evidence that Chinese companies were trying to use the company's technology to train AI models.

OpenAI to launch its first 'open-weights' model since 2019 - SiliconANGLE

OpenAI is looking to experiment with a more "open" strategy, detailing its plans to release its first "open-weights" model to the developer community later this year. The company has created a feedback form for developers on its website to provide input into the makeup of the new model, which is still under development. It's asking questions about what open models developers have used in the past, and what features would they like to see in a new open-weight model. In a post on X, OpenAI Chief Executive Sam Altman revealed a little more, saying that the upcoming open model will come with "reasoning" capabilities, similar to the company's existing o3-mini model, which takes time to consider its responses to user's prompts, increasing its accuracy. The surprise shift in OpenAI's strategy comes at a time when it has been facing pressure from numerous rivals, who have been pursuing a more open approach to AI development. For instance, the Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek Ltd.'s DeepSeek R1 model is open-source, and developers are free to experiment with it and make adaptations. However, it's important to note that an open-weights model isn't the same as one that's fully open-source. Rather, it represents more of a middle ground between open- and closed-source models. In AI, the term "weights" refers to how models learn and establish connections. In their responses, certain connections or characteristics are given greater weight in an attempt to reinforce specific information. According to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's definition, an open-weights model is one that makes its weights transparent and publicly available. So users will be able to see the model's weights and alter them, meaning they have a way to customize it without having to retrain it on new data. One advantage of open-weights models is that it's cheaper for developers to make these adjustments and customize them for different tasks. It's possible for an organization to upload internal data to an open-weights model and ensure it has the proper weights. Then it will be able to leverage that information when it generates its responses. It's a lot easier than traditional model fine-tuning. That said, it's important to remember that open-weights models aren't entirely open-source. A true open-source model allows anyone to see its source code and also the data it has been trained on, as well as the weights. With open-weights models, it's possible to see the way it makes its connections, but the underlying code and its training data is still hidden. There may also be licensing conditions that restrict how it's used. Given that OpenAI, contrary to its name, is one of the most secretive AI companies in the business - not disclosing the information ChatGPT was trained on, for example - the open-weights model is unlikely to reveal many of its secrets. Still, OpenAI clearly considers that a more open approach is necessary. The company, which today bagged $40 billion in new funding, is involved in a heated race with its competitors, which are scrambling to develop new varieties of AI models. The open-weights model will likely compete with Meta Platforms Inc.'s Llama family, which are also pitched as being open-source, although they don't meet the traditional definition either. DeepSeek is another rival, and its newest V3 model is currently believed to be one of the most powerful open-weights models available. It's a threat to OpenAI because not only does it match and sometimes even surpass the capabilities of its best proprietary models, but it's also much cheaper for businesses to use and customize. OpenAI hasn't said when it expects to launch its new open-weights model, which will be its first since it debuted GPT-2 back in February 2019. On X, Altman explained that the company needs to evaluate the new model according to its "preparedness framework," just as it does for any of its proprietary models. "And we will do extra work given that we know this model will be modified post-release.... We're excited to see what developers build and how large companies and governments use it where they prefer to run a model themselves."

OpenAI Might Have a Hidden Agenda Behind Going Open-Weight Again

This comes in the backdrop of OpenAI raising $40 billion at a $300 billion post-money valuation. Fresh from the Ghibli meme wave, OpenAI chief Sam Altman recently confirmed that a powerful new open-weight model with strong reasoning capabilities is on its way. The move is sure to help OpenAI gain more validation and credibility among developers and enterprises, who prefer using open-source weights (not to be confused with open-source models) as it allows them to customise them and host them locally. "We are planning to release our first open-weight language model since GPT-2. We've been thinking about this for a long time, but other priorities took precedence. Now, it feels important to do," he wrote in his post on X. This comes in the backdrop of OpenAI raising $40 billion at a $300 billion post-money valuation. However, why did there happen to be a sudden change of heart? OpenAI doesn't make decisions without a reason. On the surface, it seems that DeepSeek's success has influenced this move. Earlier this year, Altman, in a Reddit AMA, said OpenAI has been on the wrong side of history concerning open source. Previously, Altman even asked users on X whether they prefer an o3-mini-level model or a phone-sized version. "It's a welcome move," said Madhav Krishna, founder of Vahan.ai, in a conversation with AIM about OpenAI's decision to release open weights. He mentioned that his company will work closely with OpenAI to explore how they can integrate the new model into their operations. Notably, Vahan.ai uses OpenAI's API to build AI agents that address hiring challenges for blue-collar workers in India. The platform effectively connects job seekers with appropriate opportunities while assisting employers in identifying the best candidates. Similarly, another customer of OpenAI APIs, HealthifyMe, told AIM that they are excited to see OpenAI exploring an open-weight model. "While there's buzz around open-source alternatives like Meta's Llama and DeepSeek's R1, for us at Healthify, the main priority has always been robust, reliable personalisation. We've built significant value using fine-tuning methods on our existing solutions, which meet our specific health coaching needs," said Abhijit Khasnis, CTO of HealthifyMe. "That said, an open-weight model might offer us new ways to tailor outputs for specialised applications or even reduce costs if we can run models on local hardware. However, until we see proven use cases that directly benefit our user engagement or operational efficiencies, we'll continue to closely monitor the developments," he added. Meanwhile, DeepSeek released its advanced reasoning model R1 earlier this year, followed by an upgraded V3 in March, both of which are fully open source. R1 surpassed OpenAI's o1 model on several benchmarks. "The biggest revelation from DeepSeek is that open source has won. For a 1% difference in performance, it will be difficult for OpenAI to justify its pricing when the competition is free and formidable," said Kai-Fu Lee, founder of AI startup 01.AI, in a recent interview with Bloomberg. He added that the company will also last infinitely because its founder has enough money to fund it at the current level and has reduced computing costs by a factor of five to 10. "With such a formidable competitor, I think Sam Altman is probably not sleeping well," he quipped. Open sourcing models will help OpenAI re-engage with the developer community for a more efficient, open model that could lower the cost of its APIs, making them more competitive in the enterprise space. "OpenAI aims to retain its users by offering an open-source model that can be fine-tuned for specific business needs," Shantipriya Parida, senior AI scientist at AMD Silo AI, told AIM. He added that with free and better open-source models available, users are questioning the need to spend money on OpenAI subscriptions. Going by last year's numbers, OpenAI made $3.4 billion in total revenue, with ChatGPT emerging as the primary revenue driver, contributing $1.9 billion. Meanwhile, revenue from the API was $510 million. This indicates that many developers were not attracted towards OpenAI's API. However, according to a recent report by Bloomberg, OpenAI is on track to more than triple its revenue this year, reaching $12.7 billion. Harneet SN, founder of Rabbitt.ai, told AIM that open-weight models are crucial in sectors like healthcare, defense, and education, where on-premise deployment on their own devices is required. These industries cannot easily delegate or outsource their data to proprietary models. Having said that, Altman mentioned that the company will now be hosting developer events to gather feedback and later experiment with early prototypes. "We'll start in San Francisco in a couple of weeks, followed by sessions in Europe and Asia-Pacific." He further said that he is excited to see what developers build and how large companies and governments use it in cases where they prefer to run a model themselves. This move will also help OpenAI gain the trust of the US government. Taking a jibe at Meta's Llama 2 restrictions, Altman said, "We will not do anything silly, like saying that you can't use our open model if your service has more than 700 million monthly active users. We want everyone to use it!" Indian IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw also took a swipe at OpenAI, pointing out how it transitioned its models to closed source after GPT-2, suggesting that Indian open source model makers today might take a similar approach. "We should also change [OpenAI's] name," he quipped. Not surprisingly, Altman has been buttering up India lately. "What's happening with AI adoption in India right now is amazing to watch. We love to see the explosion of creativity -- India is outpacing the world," he wrote in a post on X. He even posted a Ghibli-style image of himself playing cricket. Meanwhile, Meta recently announced that its open-source AI model family, Llama, has surpassed 1 billion downloads. This milestone marks a sharp rise from 650 million downloads in December 2024 -- a 153% surge in just three months. Besides Meta, several companies have recently launched open-source models. Mistral's latest model, Small 3.1, Google's Gemma 3, and Cohere's Command A all claim to rival proprietary models while using fewer compute resources. On the other hand, Chinese tech giants have also upped their game. Alibaba added voice and video chat capabilities to Qwen Chat and released its brand-new open-source model, Qwen2.5-Omni-7B. Similarly, releasing an open-weight model -- where the trained parameters are shared, but the code and training data remain proprietary -- will allow OpenAI to stay relevant in a market that increasingly favours accessibility while preserving some control over its intellectual property.

An OpenAI 'open' model shows how much the company -- and AI -- has changed in two years

Welcome to AI Decoded, Fast Company's weekly newsletter that breaks down the most important news in the world of AI. You can sign up to receive this newsletter every week here. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said Monday that his company intends to release a "powerful new open-weight language model with reasoning" in the next few months. That would mark a major shift for a company that has kept its models proprietary and secret since 2019. The announcement wasn't a total surprise: After the groundbreaking Chinese open-source model DeepSeek-R1 showed up in January, Altman said during a Reddit AMA that he realized his company was "on the wrong side of history" and suggested an OpenAI open-source model was a real possibility. Open models typically come with a permissive license that requires little or no payment to the model developer. Open-weight models can be more cost-effective for corporations trying to leverage AI since they allow businesses to host (and secure) the models themselves -- avoiding the often risky prospect of sending proprietary data through an API to a third-party provider and paying fees to do it. More businesses are moving in this direction -- especially those holding sensitive user data in regulated industries. The catch: A corporate user doesn't have to pay to use the open model. Some AI labs release open models to gain credibility in the market -- potentially paving the way to eventually sell API access to their more powerful closed models. By releasing open models early on, the French AI company Mistral established itself as a top-tier AI lab and a legitimate alternative to U.S. players. Some AI labs release open-source models, then earn consulting fees by helping large enterprises deploy and optimize the models over time.

OpenAI to release its first 'open' language model since GPT-2 in 2019

The new language model will be publicly available for anyone to use, download, modify or deploy, unlike OpenAI's other recent releases, which are closed systems. OpenAI is set to launch an "open" version of its language model this year, allowing developers to run the model on their own hardware. In an update posted to X on March 31, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the artificial intelligence firm would release the powerful "new open-weight language model with the reasoning" in the coming months but first wanted to gather feedback about "how to make it maximally useful." "We've been thinking about this for a long time, but other priorities have taken precedence. Now it feels important to do," he said, adding it was the first "open-weight" model since GPT-2 in 2019. Adding that: "We still have some decisions to make, so we are hosting developer events to gather feedback and later play with early prototypes." An open-weight language model is publicly available for anyone to use, download, modify or deploy for their own purposes. It's not as open as an open-source model, but it would be a change from GPT-3 and GPT-4, which were fully closed. Altman said developer events for GPT-2 will start in San Francisco, California -- where OpenAI is headquartered -- in the next few weeks, followed by sessions in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, according to Altman. "We're excited to see what developers build and how large companies and governments use it where they prefer to run a model themselves," Altman said. "We will do extra work given that we know this model will be modified post-release." OpenAI's open-weight language model GPT-2 was partially released in February 2019, followed by a full release in November of the same year. Related: 'Our GPUs are melting' -- OpenAI puts limiter in after Ghibli-tsunami Altman also said on Feb. 12 his firm wants to ship GPT-4.5 and GPT-5 in the coming weeks or months. The AI arms race has been heating up with the launch of rival DeepSeek, which functions similarly to ChatGPT but was reportedly created at a fraction of the cost and time. Alibaba Group launched its new open-source AI model for cost-effective AI agents on March 26, while Google introduced Gemini 2.5, its latest experimental artificial intelligence model, on March 25. Meanwhile, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a March 19 Threads post that the firm's AI model family, Llama, released in February 2023, had hit 1 billion downloads.

OpenAI Teases Releasing Its First Open-Source Reasoning AI Model

The dataset and training techniques are likely not to be disclosed OpenAI is planning to release an open-source artificial intelligence (AI) model. This would be the San Francisco-based AI firm's first open-source reasoning-focused AI model, and it is expected to be released in the next few months. This will be the company's first open-source release since the GPT-2 model, which was introduced in November 2019. The AI firm is currently seeking feedback from the developer community to better understand their needs and requirements. OpenAI said that a major focus in the development of the AI model will be on safety. The open-source space in AI has become quite competitive. From companies focused on the community, such as Meta, Mistral, and Alibaba, to tech giants, such as Google and Microsoft, have all released multiple open models. However, OpenAI has been missing in this area ever since the release of GPT-2, and has focused on only releasing closed software that cannot be downloaded or modified for either research or commercial purposes. Earlier this year, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was also asked a question on the same topic during an ask-me-anything (AMA) session on Reddit. Altman admitted that the company has been "on the wrong side of history" in this aspect and "need to figure out a different open-source strategy." But he also added that it was not the company's highest priority. However, on Monday, the company CEO shared an "Open model feedback" form in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), suggesting that the AI firm is now planning to build an open-weight AI model with advanced reasoning. For the unaware, the weights are just the numerical values of the connections the AI makes to generate an output. While it is a significant part of the AI model, without the dataset and training techniques in the public domain, the model cannot be replicated or built from scratch to add onto another system. Such black boxed AI models are generally considered partially open. Altman said that the safety of the model will remain a core focus area for the company, given that the model will be modified post-release. The AI firm plans to refer to its Preparedness Framework for this.

OpenAI set to launch a new open-source language model in coming months

OpenAI to launch its first open-weight model since GPT-2, ensuring safety; developer sessions planned in SF, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.; 1M users joined ChatGPT in an hour via the viral AI image trend.A few days after unveiling its latest image generator, OpenAI has revealed plans to launch a new open language model -- its first since GPT-2. To shape its development, the company is seeking input from developers, researchers, and the wider AI community through a feedback form. Open-source language models (OS LLMs) are designed to understand, generate, and manipulate human language, leveraging large datasets and sophisticated algorithms to perform a variety of language-based tasks. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman took to X (formerly Twitter) to announce the news, stating, "We are planning to release our first open-weight language model since GPT-2. We've been thinking about this for a long time, but other priorities took precedence. Now it feels important to do." Altman added that before the model is released, OpenAI plans to evaluate it using its preparedness framework, the same process applied to all its models. "And we will do extra work given that we know this model will be modified post-release," he stated in the post. Altman also noted that the first developer event will be held in San Francisco in the coming weeks, with additional sessions planned for Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. This announcement follows Altman's recent claim that ChatGPT gained one million users in just an hour, driven by excitement over its new image generator tool. The "Turn it into Ghibli-style" trend quickly took the internet by storm, with users transforming their profile pictures, pets, and even politicians into whimsical anime-style portraits.

In shift, OpenAI announces open AI model

Artificial intelligence powerhouse OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, on Monday announced it is building a more open generative AI model as it faces growing competition in the open-source space from Chinese rival DeepSeek and Meta. The announcement came as OpenAI has been riding on the success of its latest image-generation features in ChatGPT, the world-leading AI app and chatbot.Artificial intelligence powerhouse OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, on Monday announced it is building a more open generative AI model as it faces growing competition in the open-source space from Chinese rival DeepSeek and Meta. The announcement marks a strategic shift by OpenAI, which until now has been a fierce defender of closed, proprietary models that do not allow developers to modify the basic technology to make AI more adapted to their goals. OpenAI and defenders of closed models -- which include Google -- have often decried open models as more risky and vulnerable to nefarious uses by bad actors or foreign adversaries. OpenAI's embrace of closed models has also been a bone of contention in its battles with former investor Elon Musk, the world's wealthiest person, who has called on OpenAI to honor the spirit of the company's name and "return to the open-source, safety-focused force for good it once was." Putting pressure on OpenAI, many large companies and governments have proved reluctant to build their AI products or services on models they have no control over, especially when data security is a concern. The core selling point of Meta's family of Llama models or DeepSeek's models is addressing these worries by letting companies download their models and have far greater control to modify the technology for their own purposes and keep control of their data. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said earlier this month that Llama hit one billion downloads, while the release of DeepSeek's lower cost R1 model in January rocked the world of artificial intelligence. "We've been thinking about this for a long time but other priorities took precedence. Now it feels important to do," OpenAI's chief executive Sam Altman said on X. As it builds its new model, the company plans to gather developer feedback through a series of events starting in San Francisco in the coming weeks, followed by sessions in Europe and Asia-Pacific regions. The announcement came as OpenAI has been riding on the success of its latest image-generation features in ChatGPT, the world-leading AI app and chatbot. Altman posted on Monday that the tool helped add "one million users" in one hour. That claim came days after Altman said the new image features were so popular that they were melting the OpenAI graphics processing units that power the AI due to heavy use. The flurry of announcements comes as OpenAI is reportedly finalizing a $40 billion funding round led by Japan's SoftBank Group that would be the biggest capital-raising session ever for a startup.

OpenAI plans to release open-weight language model in coming months

OpenAI is planning to release its first open-weight language model with reasoning capabilities since GPT-2 in the coming months, CEO Sam Altman said on Monday. An open-weight language model's trained parameters or weights are publicly accessible, which can be used by developers to analyze and fine-tune the model for specific tasks without requiring original training data. These language models are different from open-source models, which provide access to the complete source code, training data and methodologies. The company will speak with developers about how to make an open-weight language model useful, Altman said in his post on X. The first event will take place in San Francisco within a few weeks, followed by sessions in Europe and Asia-Pacific regions. "We still have some decisions to make, so we are hosting developer events to gather feedback and later play with early prototypes," he said. Altman had said in February the company would simplify its AI products as he outlined a new roadmap for latest models. Microsoft-backed OpenAI must transition to a for-profit company by the end of the year to secure the full $40 billion funding led by SoftBank Group, a person familiar with the matter said on Friday. The startup has said its transition to a for-profit entity is required to secure the capital it needs to develop the best AI models. OpenAI had closed a $6.6 billion funding round in October.

Sam Altman-Led OpenAI Releases Open-Weight AI Model With Reasoning Capabilities As DeepSeek And Meta Taste Success - Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META), SoftBank Group (OTC:SFTBF)

On Monday, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced that the company plans to release its new open-weight language model with reasoning capabilities in the coming months. This decision might have been driven by the impressive success of DeepSeek's R1 model and the growing popularity of Meta Platforms, Inc.'s META Llama models. What Happened: In a post shared on X, formerly Twitter, Altman revealed that the model would be the first of its kind since GPT-2 and would feature publicly accessible trained parameters or weights, allowing developers to fine-tune the model for specific tasks. "We've been thinking about this for a long time, but other priorities took precedence," Altman said, adding, "Now it feels important to do." Altman also said that the company plans to get feedback from developers through a series of global events. See Also: Arm Aims for 50% Data Center CPU Market Share by 2025, Challenging Intel and AMD "We still have some decisions to make, so we are hosting developer events to gather feedback and later play with early prototypes," he said. The first event will take place in San Francisco, followed by sessions in Europe and Asia-Pacific regions. Subscribe to the Benzinga Tech Trends newsletter to get all the latest tech developments delivered to your inbox. OpenAI provides access to its AI via a chatbot and cloud-based services. In contrast, models like R1, Llama, and other open-weight alternatives can be freely downloaded and customized. A model's weights represent the internal values of a neural network, determined during training. Open-weight models offer a cost-effective solution and can be adapted for specialized applications, such as processing sensitive or confidential data, reported Wired. After DeepSeek launched its model in January, Altman remarked that OpenAI was "on the wrong side of history" when it came to open models, hinting at a possible change in stance. OpenAI might aim to demonstrate its ability to train the new model efficiently, especially since DeepSeek's model was reportedly developed at a significantly lower cost than most large AI models. "This is amazing news," Clement Delangue, co-founder and CEO of Hugging Face, a company known for hosting open AI models, told the publication. "With DeepSeek, everyone's realizing the power of open weights." OpenAI is also transitioning to a for-profit company by the end of the year to secure a $40 billion funding round led by SoftBank Group SFTBF SFTBY, which will support the development of future AI models. This move comes after the company closed a $6.6 billion funding round in October. Meanwhile, Meta has seen significant success with its AI model family, 'Llama,' which reached a milestone of 1 billion downloads. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg highlighted this achievement, underscoring the growing confidence in open-source AI models. Photo by jamesonwu1972 on Shutterstock Check out more of Benzinga's Consumer Tech coverage by following this link. Read Next: OpenAI And Microsoft Back MCP Standard For Web-Surfing AI Agents; Google's Sundar Pichai Asks A Shakespearean Question Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. METAMeta Platforms Inc$572.90-0.67%Stock Score Locked: Want to See it? Benzinga Rankings give you vital metrics on any stock - anytime. Reveal Full ScoreEdge RankingsMomentum80.75Growth74.80Quality-Value42.12Price TrendShortMediumLongOverviewSFTBFSoftBank Group Corp$62.2717.8%SFTBYSoftBank Group Corp$25.28-1.56%Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

AI Models and Tools: OpenAI to Release an Open-source AI Model | PYMNTS.com

This week, OpenAI said it is planning to release an open-source language model for the first time in years. The creator of ChatGPT disclosed the news through a form requesting feedback for this strategy, saying it wants to hear from developers, researchers and the public to help it "make this model as useful as possible." The open-source model would be coming "in months," according to OpenAI. OpenAI said the last time it released an open-source model -- meaning the model would be generally free to use, modify and distribute -- was for the GPT-2 LLM in 2019. The startup is now at GPT-4.5. OpenAI decided to make its models proprietary after Microsoft invested $1 billion in the startup, as part of a multi-year partnership to advance artificial intelligence (AI) model development. Microsoft would end up investing more than $13 billion in OpenAI to date, and OpenAI's models are exclusive to clients of Microsoft's Azure cloud services. OpenAI also solely used Azure for its cloud computing needs, but this arrangement ended in January 2025. In the past six years, OpenAI has kept its large language models closed, starting with GPT-3 until the latest GPT-4.5 and also for the o1 and o3 models. OpenAI's decision comes as open-source models like Meta's Llama, Mistral's LLM and DeepSeek have been gaining in popularity. In March, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on Threads that Llama has been downloaded 1 billion times. Llama was launched in 2023. "Open sourcing AI is crucial to ensuring people everywhere have access to the benefits of AI," Meta said in a blog post. The social media giant said Spotify is one company that has used Llama to deliver customized recommendations of new songs, artists, podcasts or audiobooks to its listeners. Chinese AI startup DeepSeek, whose inexpensive open-source models caught Silicon Valley's attention in January, reportedly had to restrict API access because of soaring demand. The three major cloud companies -- AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud -- all have added DeepSeek's R1 reasoning model to their platforms for use by clients. After DeepSeek's popularity, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly said in late January that the startup would have to "figure out a different open-source strategy," during a community forum with Reddit users. Read more: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman: Company Considering 'Different Open-Source Strategy' Following the popularity of DeepSeek, Chinese tech giants have released updated versions of their own AI models -- all in March. Alibaba Cloud released its Qwenb 2.5-Omni-7B multimodal model that can process text, images, audio and video while generating real-time text and natural speech responses. Alibaba said the model's performance is "outstanding" and it is available as open source on Hugging Face and GitHub. The model is part of Alibaba's Qwen family of foundation models. Baidu released two new AI models: a natively multimodal one called Ernie 4.5 and a "deep thinking" reasoning model called Ernie X1. Baidu said the models offer "advanced capabilities at a more accessible price point." The company said Ernie 4.5 will be open-sourced this June but did not disclose plans for X1. Tencent unveiled its Hunyuan T1 reasoning model that reportedly rivals DeepSeek in performance and price, according to the South China Morning Post. AI startup Manus went viral for its AI agent that can do general tasks instead of one specific skill. It did not unveil a foundation model but rather uses the LLMs of others such as Anthropic's Claude to power its agent.

Sam Altman's OpenAI To Release 'Powerful' Open-Weight AI -- Stops Short of Full Transparency

OpenAI plans to release its first open-weight AI model since GPT-2, but will stop short of fully open-sourcing the project. | Credit: Eugene Gologursky / Stringer Getty Images. In the coming months, OpenAI plans to release what Sam Altman described as a "powerful" open-weight model -- its first since GPT-2. The move will see OpenAI partially return to its roots in open research. However, the company is stopping short of fully open-sourcing the new AI. Open-Source vs. Open-Weight In machine learning, model weights refer to the numerical parameters AI models learn during training. Disclosing model weights means third parties will be able to run the model locally rather than relying on OpenAI's servers. In contrast, open-source projects publish model weights alongside the code and documentation that describes how the model works. As well as being able to deploy models on their own hardware, the open-source approach means other parties can modify and adapt AI to suit their needs. For the first time in recent years, open-source models offer comparable performance to the most advanced proprietary AI. In China especially, DeepSeek's success has revitalized the open-source AI scene, giving it new momentum after a period in which closed research dominated. However, large American firms, including OpenAI, maintain strict control over their most powerful models. How OpenAI Embraced Closed AI When OpenAI was founded in 2015, what was then a non-profit looked remarkably different from the company today. "Our aim is to build value for everyone rather than shareholders," OpenAI said in its founding statement . "Researchers will be strongly encouraged to publish their work, whether as papers, blog posts, or code, and our patents⁠ (if any) will be shared with the world," OpenAI added. What a difference a decade makes. Since 2015, OpenAI has filed over 150 AI-related patents. Its latest research papers offer only a glimpse into the inner workings of its technology. Meanwhile, former employees have spoken out against an increasingly restrictive research environment that limits what they can publish. This transformation has inevitably drawn criticism.Most notably from co-founder Elon Musk. Musk sued OpenAI in 2024, alleging that he and "the non-profit's namesake objective was betrayed by [CEO Sam] Altman and his accomplices." In March 2025 the court rejected Musk's request for a preliminary injunction , a decision that was welcomed by OpenAI.

Sam Altman's ChatGPT openly challenges DeepSeek, Llama: Open source AI war begins

In tech, clarity is rare. But sometimes, a couple of tweets tell you everything you need to know. On a quiet Tuesday, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman casually tossed a stone into the AI pond with two back-to-back posts on X.com. The ripples are still forming, but they're only going to get bigger and broader. "We are planning to release our first open-weight language model since GPT-2," Altman said, in what may turn out to be a milestone moment for open AI development. Then came the follow-up, laced with just enough snark to make it stick. "We will not do anything silly like saying that you can't use our open model if your service has more than 700 million monthly active users. We want everyone to use it!" If that sounds like a thinly veiled swipe at Meta's Llama license restrictions, that's because it is. Far from a simple product announcement, it's a gauntlet being thrown in the open-source AI arena, announcing that ChatGPT is ready for a fight. Let's start with the basics. OpenAI is preparing to release a new "open-weight" model - one with advanced reasoning capabilities. That means developers will get access to the model's actual neural network weights, making it possible to run, fine-tune, and build on top of it without starting from scratch. It's what we are all used to seeing on Hugging Face Spaces, for instance - a playground for developers to tweak and tinker with a foundational LLM model and release their versions by playing around with their "weights". This is a big deal, especially for open source AI. While GPT-2 was the last OpenAI model with weights available to the public, things have changed. The AI arms race has heated up. Everyone's building their own large language models - some more open than others. Also read: DeepSeek vs Meta: 5 Things Mark Zuckerberg Teased About Llama 4 and the Future of Open-Source AI And that's the point. Altman isn't just releasing a model. He's taking a very public position in an industry where the definition of "open" has gotten suspiciously flexible. Meta's Llama family of models made headlines when they were first released with much fanfare around being "open source." But take a closer look, and you'll find a long list of caveats, hints Sam Altman through his recent tweet. Chief among them? If your service has more than 700 million monthly active users, you can't use Llama without a separate agreement. It's a protective move from Meta, likely meant to keep hyperscalers and big tech companies from swooping in and using the model at massive scale without paying for the privilege. But to many in the open-source community, it smells like classic corporate gatekeeping. Also read: DeepSeek AI: How this free LLM is shaking up AI industry China's DeepSeek recently upped the ante, releasing its own open-weight model reportedly trained at a fraction of the cost and competing head-to-head with Western alternatives. It's efficient, multilingual, and undeniably ambitious. But again, questions remain around just how "open" it really is. In this confusion over "open-weight" vs "open source", OpenAI sees its opportunity. It's betting that being truly open - without vague usage restrictions or corporate fine print - is what the developer community actually wants. Sam Altman understands it's the only way to the hearts, minds, and keyboards of developers around the world - and thereby future AI products based on ChatGPT. What makes this Sam Altman announcement different from past announcements is the way OpenAI is rolling it out. Altman isn't just releasing the model. He's kicking off a series of developer meetups - starting in San Francisco, then heading to Europe and APAC - to get feedback before the model is finalized. "We still have some decisions to make, so we are hosting developer events to gather feedback and later play with early prototypes." It's clear, at least for now, that this isn't just about publishing a model - it's about building a developer community. OpenAI wants developers not just to use its tools, but to shape them. And it's doing so by positioning itself as the transparent, accessible alternative to others in the space. For anyone who's been frustrated by closed APIs, restrictive licenses, or paywalled models, this move seems different. An open-weight model with no strings attached could democratize AI development on a global scale. It means startups and researchers in India, or anywhere else in the world, could all use the same tools as the biggest tech firms - without asking permission. Altman knows this. That's why he's doubling down on accessibility and trust. Not just "we built this," but "you can use it too." Also read: DeepSeek to Qwen: Top AI models released in 2025 This isn't altruism, of course. OpenAI understands the strategic advantage of becoming the go-to open model in a landscape full of locked doors and NDA-bound partnerships. But that doesn't make the benefits any less real. And in an era where so much of tech feels like a walled garden, a little openness goes a long way. OpenAI says the model will go through its internal "preparedness framework" before release. That includes safety checks, performance benchmarks, and stress tests to ensure it won't be misused or go off the rails. That's especially important because open-weight models can - and will - be modified after release. But perhaps the most important part is what happens after the model is in the wild. If the model is good - and Altman says it will be "very, very good" - developers will start building fast. Expect plug-ins, fine-tuned niche apps, industry-specific tools, and unexpected use cases from parts of the world Big Tech usually overlooks. And if that happens, OpenAI won't just have released another model. It will have rewritten the playbook on what AI openness can mean in 2025. It's ChatGPT vs DeepSeek vs Llama now. The open-source AI wars have begun. And in the process, developers might finally be getting what they've always wanted: freedom to build without friction.